What actually happens to a work when artists’ designs are passed on to technicians? A new exhibition put together by the West Dean Tapestry Studio titled “Artists Meet their Makers: new exhibition on the art of woven tapestry” aims to shed some light onto this murky question. Opening at the Crafts Study Centre in Farnham on the 4th of April this year, the exhibition will feature a selection of the UK’s leading artists alongside their partner master weavers, and will remain open until July. Contributing artists will include Michael Brennand-Wood, Tracey Emin, Henry Moore and Basil Beattie, all of whose works will hang alongside new commissions from artists Rebecca Slater and Biggs and Collings, both weaving tapestries for the very first time.
There is always an element of translation and interpretation in weaving someone else’s idea, and this exhibition will focus on just that. “At a certain stage, I handed the image over to Philip”, Michael Brennand-Wood recalls during the making of his tapestry “Transformer” in 2012 by weaver Philip Sanderson. “I kept thinking it's like handing over the master tapes to be re-mixed. It was really exciting to see how the imagery is interpreted once the weaving begins." This particular kind of collaboration between artists and master weavers is a popular practice these days, with leading sculptor Eva Rothschild winning the studio’s Tapestry Commission Open Call last year. This much anticipated artwork is currently in the hands of the master weavers, and will be revealed at the exhibition in April.
The show’s curator Liz Cooper hopes that the show will begin touring soon after it's unveiled at the Crafts Study Centre this year. With a background in both art textiles and contemporary art, Cooper herself occupies this space between craft and concept, and hopes that this show will play a role in valuing craft practice in a wider visual arts context. Giving equal attention to both artists and makers, this exhibition will aim to do just that.
http://www.csc.uca.ac.uk/new-events/2017/4/4/exhibition-artists-meet-their-makers
https://www.westdean.org.uk/about/media/west-dean-tapestry-studio
https://lizcooper.org/
