PONTYPOOL'S new art gallery is the scene of some strange and wonderful work created with the help of people from all walks of life.

Officially opened on September 12, the Barker Gallery promises to be a premier new arts venue for Torfaen, and its first exhibition could be described as a meditation on spirituality and beliefs.

Altar Ego is a collection of photographs by Welsh artist Phil Cope. He has travelled extensively and one place of particular interest is Haiti, described as the "poorest country in the western hemisphere."

Mr Cope has forged strong links with Haiti setting up a charitable fund via the Lottery International Grant, to improve education opportunities, and running a project in 1998, involving Wales' leading storyteller, Daniel Morden.

Mr Morden "exchanged" Welsh legends for their Haitian equivalents, with school children, and the project eventually resulted in a book- Magic Children.

Altar Ego carries through the exchange of cultures theme, focusing on Mr Cope's interest in the voodoo faith, and in particular, the custom of altars adorning homes. Taking the concept a step further, he decided to invite people across his native Wales to construct their own altars, which he photographed.

As he explains: "The project offered an opportunity for people throughout Wales to explore notions of belief, worship and spirituality at the turning point between two millennia...."

Whether people would embrace the idea remained to be seen, but as the artist goes on to explain, the response was overwhelming: "Queues formed in some venues, people weighed down by their most precious possessions, anxious to share their ideas with others.

"We have altars on religions, families, best friends, football teams, nations, cars, dead poets, gardening, The Simpsons, to name but a few.

"The project has seen in excess of 200 contemporary altars created by people of all ages, abilities and shades of life."

If you want to see the extraordinary photographic results, the exhibition, in the Barker Gallery, Pontypool Museum, runs until November 18. Telephone 01495 752 036 for further information.