Weaving Between the Lines

- an exhibition of contemporary British Columbia tapestry sponsored by the B.C. Society of Tapestry Artists (B.C. STARS) and the Canadian Craft Museum.

The exhibition has been curated by veteran tapestry maker and art educator Jane Kidd. Weaving Between The Lines includes works by the artists Anne Clark, Marion Cragg, Gabriela Diaconu, Laura Ford, Barbara Heller, Alison Keenan, Lois Kennedy, Margaret Klajnart, Mieko Konaka, Karen Leitch, Anthea Mallison, Jane MacKenzie, Kaija Rautiainen, and Jane Kidd (Curator). Each tapestry expresses the makers "conceptual ideas and personal narrative reflecting contemporary culture". The narrative voice in these works however, is more poetic than literal. As a result, the viewer is not only treated to a visual feast, but is offered an opportunity to read between the lines and engage in the highly creative act of interpretation. This exhibit is an opportunity to consider craft not only for its functionality, but for its ability to express an artistic vision.

A special feature of Weaving Between The Lines is the inclusion of the Community Tapestry for the Dr. Peter AIDS Centre. This powerful 6' x 8' tapestry, which incorporates many design features of medieval tapestries. was designed by five members of B.C. Stars and woven by 40 volunteers, both professional and amateur, on a large loom at the downtown branch of the Vancouver Public Library. When the tour of the exhibition ends, B.C. Stars will donate the tapestry to the Dr. Peter AIDS Hospice and Day Care Centre.

Weaving Between The Lines
Installation
Grand Forks Art Gallery (East Gallery)

In a curatorial statement Curator Jane Kidd comments: "Contemporary tapestry is a discursive practice influenced by a narrative and metaphoric tradition, the symbiosis of art and craft, and a unique material identity. Within this exhibition the physical presence of tapestry's material identity provides the strongest link between works. The physical construct of the weft-faced tapestry technique is skillfully and thoughtfully manipulated by all the artists involved in the exhibition. The choice of tapestry as an artmaking process evokes reference to time, labour, and the value of the skill of the human hand as a subtext underlying the personal statements evident in each of these works."

Tapestry weaving differs from other forms of weaving in having no weft, or horizontal threads, that run through the full width of the fabric. Discontinuous wefts are used to produce patterns. As in plain cloth weaving, the weft threads pass over and under alternate warp threads with each passage, or pick. The wefts are beaten tightly together by various tools such as battens, reeds, combs, or even the fingers.

The earliest known tapestry weaving was done by the Egyptians in the 15th century bc. Fragments of linen tapestry preserved by the dry desert climate have been found in the tombs of Thutmose IV and Tutankhamen. Silk tapestries called k'o-ssu have long been produced in China, with examples from the T'ang dynasty (618-906 ad.). The word k'o-ssu means broken or cracked silk and refers to the tiny slits formed along the design edges. In the early 16th century in Japan the tapestry technique appeared, likely brought from China. In Kyoto weavers produced tsuzure nishike, or "fingernail tapestry," in which the weavers worked the weft of the cotton-warp silk-weft tapestry with their long, specially grooved fingernails. Records would indicate that tapestry-making was practiced in Europe as early as the 8th century, although none still exist. Between the 14th and 18th centuries, Western European tapestry reached its greatest achievement, with Aubusson one of the renowned centers of production. In the 1920s, there was a revival of work at Aubusson, and many tapestries were copies of 17th-century Aubusson works. but artists such as Jean Lurçat gained a reputation for his contemporary work.

Beginning in the 1950s, what may be called truly modern tapestries emerged. Since the 1950s, there has been an strong emergence of textile art. Contemporary works may be constructed with many different techniques; it may be woven on or off a loom, crocheted, knotted, or involve many other techniques. Textiles are no longer tied to the loom and relegated to the category of decorative arts; they are accepted as creative objects along with painting and sculpture.

GFAG Home Page.