FRENCH CIVILISATION

FRENCH TAPESTRY

Elisabeth Le Doze-Wakefield, Alliance Francaise, Bath, on 19 February 2001

The first part of the talk focussed on the techniques of weaving tapestry. Tapestry is created by a partnership between the artist who designs the cartoon and the weavers who use their experience and skills to carry out the artist's intentions. A good working relationship between the artist and the weavers is essential. The latter work out how best to achieve the result the artist is looking for the right blend of wools and/or silks for a particular colour effect, for instance and enormous skill is required for this. It is physically demanding as well, with the feet operating pedals that can require a lot of force, and it is very tiring for the eyes.

We saw examples on colour slides of some of the most famous tapestries, like the oldest tapestry in France, The Apocalypse of St. John, in Angers, from the 14th century, and the beautiful 15th century Lady and the Unicorn series at the Musée de Cluny in Paris.

At the beginning of the 20th century there was a crisis in tapestry making, with tapestries becoming mere copies of paintings. Between the wars, however, artists like Jean Lurçat, Braque and others designed specifically for tapestries. During the Occupation, after 1940, many artists and intellectuals (Picasso, Le Corbusier, the poet Paul Eluard) took refuge at Aubusson, which was in a very remote area in central France. Aubusson carried on producing tapestries, but some of them were coded to express a sort of artistic Resistance. Jean Lurçat became interested in tapestry, but because he objected to tapestry looking like a painting, he designed and had made a coarser type of tapestry which clearly showed up the weave.

A lot has changed since then. For example, at Beauvais, the weavers are now civil servants, working for the State. Le Corbusier and Dufy were among the artists who designed for them. Contemporary abstract artists often create designs specifically for tapestries, and some of these are very powerful and impressive, as was shown in the slides.

In discussion it emerged that there was tapestry making in Britain in the past at Chichester and Edinburgh. Is there still tapestry made in France? Mostly the tapestry workshops do restoration work. However, if you want to spend £20,000 or £30,000, you can get one made at Aubusson, which still does private work.

Anne Whitmarsh