L’enclos (Enclosure)
Aubusson tapestry woven in the Brivet workshop.
With signed label, n°4/4.
1966.
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Bibliography : Simon Chaye tapisseries contemporaines, Editions Librairie des musées, 2014, ill. p.27It was in 1953 that Jean Picart le Doux proposed to Chaye to become his assistant and encouraged him to design tapestry cartoons : he would produce numerous bucolic cartoons, but also views of Normandy (Mont Saint Michel, Honfleur, regattas,...) from whence he came. Here is a thoroughly characteristic cartoon of this artist who specialises in pastures, hedges and woodland scenes.
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Cadran solaire (Sundial)
It was in 1953 that Jean Picart le Doux proposed to Chaye to become his assistant and encouraged him to design tapestry cartoons : he would produce numerous bucolic cartoons, but also views of Normandy (Mont Saint Michel, Honfleur, regattas,…) from whence he came. In order to express Nature’s harmony, Chaye includes in this characteristic scene of a river bank animated by flowers and animals, a sign of human presence, static and discreet : a sundial. Bibliography : Simon Chaye tapisseries contemporaines, Editions Librairie des musées, 2014, ill. p.29Aubusson tapestry woven in the Legoueix workshop. With signed label, n°6/6. 1969. -
Bouquet d'octobre (october bouquet)
Aubusson tapestry woven in the Legoueix workshop. With label, n°5/6. 1974.Bibliography : Simon Chaye tapisseries contemporaines, Editions Librairie des musées, 2014, ill. p.77It was in 1953 that Jean Picart le Doux proposed to Chaye to become his assistant and encouraged him to design tapestry cartoons : he would produce numerous bucolic cartoons, but also views of Normandy (Mont Saint Michel, Honfleur, regattas,...) whence he came. The theme of the bouquet is omnipresent in Chaye’s work ; it allows him seasonal or chromatic associations of great decorative value. -
Soleil rouge (Red sun)
Aubusson tapestry woven in the Legoueix workshop. With signed label, n°1/6. 1989.It was in 1953 that Jean Picart le Doux proposed to Chaye to become his assistant and encouraged him to design tapestry cartoons : he would produce numerous bucolic cartoons, but also views of Normandy (Mont Saint Michel, Honfleur, regattas,…) whence he came. A design which brings together two leitmotivs characteristic of Simon Chaye, a bouquet and a flock of birds, which here detach themselves from a background formed by the red sun.Bibliography : Simon Chaye tapisseries contemporaines, Editions Librairie des musées, 2014, ill. p.120 -
Source claire (clear spring)
Aubusson tapestry woven in the Bonjour workshop. With signed label, n°3/4. 1973.It was in 1953 that Jean Picart le Doux proposed to Chaye to become his assistant and encouraged him to design tapestry cartoons : he would produce numerous bucolic cartoons, but also views of Normandy (Mont Saint Michel, Honfleur, regattas,…) whence he came.A classic cartoon in the naturalistic vein of this particular artist, who made a speciality of enclosures, hedges and riverbanks with animals.Bibliography : Simon Chaye tapisseries contemporaines, Editions Librairie des musées, 2014, ill. p.41 -
L'étang (the pond)
Aubusson tapestry woven in the Legoueix workshop. With signed label, n°6/6. Circa 1965.It was in 1953 that Jean Picart le Doux proposed to Chaye to become his assistant and encouraged him to design tapestry cartoons : he would produce numerous bucolic cartoons, but also views of Normandy (Mont Saint Michel, Honfleur, regattas,…) whence he came. An exact reproduction of the cartoon “Nénuphars” (waterlilies), the only difference being the change of the background colour from the original green.Bibliography : Simon Chaye tapisseries contemporaines, Editions Librairie des musées, 2014 -
Eclosion (hatching)
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Legoueix workshop. With signed label, n°1/6. Circa 1970. It was in 1953 that Jean Picart le Doux proposed to Chaye to become his assistant and encouraged him to design tapestry cartoons : he would produce numerous bucolic cartoons, but also views of Normandy (Mont Saint Michel, Honfleur, regattas,…) from whence he came. Here is a thoroughly characteristic cartoon of this artist who specialises in pastures, hedges and woodland scenes. Bibliography : Simon Chaye tapisseries contemporaines, Editions Librairie des musées, 2014 -
Gerbe (Sheaf)
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Legoueix workshop. N°4/6. 1985. It was in 1953 that Jean Picart le Doux proposed to Chaye to become his assistant and encouraged him to design tapestry cartoons : he would produce numerous bucolic cartoons, but also views of Normandy (Mont Saint Michel, Honfleur, regattas,…) whence he came. These compositions “as the bird flies” are typical of the artist. Here, the fields beneath their wings, in a geometrical evocation of the countryside in summer, are associated with a magnified (or metaphorical) representation of the crops planted therein (wheat, corn,…). Bibliography : Simon Chaye tapisseries contemporaines, Editions Librairie des musées, 2014, ill. p.80 -
Moulin (mill)
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Glaudin-Brivet workshop. With label, n°3/6. 1974. Bibliography : Simon Chaye tapisseries contemporaines, Editions Librairie des musées, 2014, ill. p.40 -
Survol (flying over)
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Legoueix workshop. With signed label, n°5/6. 1974. It was in 1953 that Jean Picart le Doux proposed to Chaye to become his assistant and encouraged him to design tapestry cartoons : he would produce numerous bucolic cartoons, but also views of Normandy (Mont Saint Michel, Honfleur, regattas,...) whence he came. These compositions “as the bird flies” are typical of the artist. Bibliography : Simon Chaye tapisseries contemporaines, Editions Librairie des musées, 2014, ill. p.83 -
Poisson cardinal (cardinal fish)
Tapestry woven in the Saint-Cyr workshop. With signed label, n°EA2. 1978.Roger Bezombes was a proponent of monumental art from the beginning. He received numerous commissions for tapestries on behalf of the state which were woven first at the Gobelins and then at Aubusson, particularly with the Hamot workshop whose dyers were able to produce for him wools to match exactly the colours used for his cartons (which he painted himself to scale). In 1952-53, he produced a monumental set (300 m2) for the pavilion of the French colonies at the Cité Universitaire de Paris. He abandoned the weaving technique at the end of the 1950’s in favour of hangings made of assembled fabrics. These murals (one of the first of which « la Musique », 25m long, was commissioned for France’s broadcasting headquarters La Maison de la Radio) are patchworks made from assembled fragments of cloth, and sometimes other materials, sewn, stuck or stapled together. However, as here, some of his murals were reproduced in tapestry form by the Saint Cyr workshop belonging to Pierre Daquin. In these cases the theme of the fish is omnipresent ; Bezombes however is no ichthyologist, rather a poet : it is the colour, cardinal red, which concerns him here and not the fish of the same name. -
Procyon
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Legoueix workshop. With signed label, n°3/4. 1968.A member of the A.P.C.T. (Association des Peintres-Cartonniers de Tapisserie), Wogensky is one of the many artists who would follow in Lurçat’s footsteps immediately after the war. At first influenced by his predecessor, Wogensky’s subsequent work (159 cartoons according to the 1989 exhibition catalogue) would evolve during the 1960’s towards a, not completely self-avowed, lyrical abstraction, from cosmic-astronomical themes expressed in decomposed, moving, birdlike shapes to cartoons both more refined and less dense. Although always claiming to be a painter, the artist’s conception of tapestry is extremely well thought out : “the realisation of a mural cartoon.... requires the consideration of a space which is no longer ours alone, by the nature of its dimensions, its scale, it also imposes a grand gesture which transforms and accentuates our presence.” « Procyon » is a work inspired by Wogensky’s « cosmic » vein (it’s title alone bears witness to the fact) which lasted through the 1960’s and of which “Cosmos” (1968 Strasbourg University) and “Galaxy” (1970, Sénat Palais du Luxembourg) would be the high points. Shading (omnipresent) and blocks of colour co-exist in a subtle harmony, evoking a curious, unknown world with elements of the infinitely small as seen through a microscope and the infinitely large. A similar tapestry is kept at the Musée Jean Lurçat et de la Tapisserie Contemporaine in Angers. Bibliography : Exhibition catalogue Robert Wogensky, Aubusson, Musée départemental de la tapisserie, 1989 Exhibition catalogue Robert Wogensky, Angers, Musée Jean Lurçat et de la Tapisserie Contemporaine, 1989 Exhibition catalogue Tissages d’ateliers, tissages d’artistes, 10 ans d’enrichissement des Collections, Angers, Musée Jean Lurçat et de la Tapisserie Contemporaine, 2004, ill. p.101 Exhibition catalogue Collections ! Collections !, Angers, Musée Jean Lurçat et de la Tapisserie Contemporaine, 2019-2020, ill. p.11 -
Garrigue de printemps (spring garrigue)
Debiève designed numerous cartoons in a style that is typical of the 1940’s (« le remailleur de filets” the mender of nets, “le potier” the potter,...) although the vast majority were printed on fabric. A notably smaller number of his designs were produced as tapestries in Aubusson and his cartoons are close to the aesthetic of his paintings inspired by Provence.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Jean Laurent workshop. With label, n°3/8. 1976. -
Hommage à l'abbé Breuil (a tribute to Father Breuil)
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Pinton workshop. Complete with certificate of origin. Circa 1955. Perrot began his career as a cartoon designer at the end of the war, making almost 500 cartoons including numerous commissions from the state, most of which were woven at Aubusson. His style which is particularly rich and decorative is eminently recognisable : a crowd of butterflies or birds, most often, stands out against a background of vegetation, reminiscent of the millefleurs tapestries (which would also inspire Dom Robert). Uncharacteristic cartoon whose inspiration lies in the cave paintings at Lascaux ; here it can be said that never has a tapestry merited quite so well the term « wall art ». Perrot’s input is, in the end, relatively modest : the use of saturated colours (particularly the mauve-pink background), the overlapping of the motifs (which are more spaced out in the cave itself), superficial laid over blotching,... If Perrot is an habitué of hommage-cartoons (Pergaud, Redouté, Audubon,...) this particular example is interesting because of the well-established proximity between the artist and the dedicatee, “the Pope of Prehistory”: here the hommage owes nothing to the artificiality of an official commission. Bibliography : Tapisseries, dessins, peintures, gravures de René Perrot, Dessein et Tolra, 1982 -
La roue (the wheel)
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Pinton workshop. Complete with certificate of origin. Circa 1970. Perrot began his career as a cartoon designer at the end of the war, making almost 500 cartoons including numerous commissions from the state, most of which were woven at Aubusson. His style which is particularly rich and decorative is eminently recognisable : a crowd of butterflies or birds, most often, stands out against a background of vegetation, reminiscent of the millefleurs tapestries (which would also inspire Dom Robert). The mediaeval inspiration of a flower-studded, khaki background, numerous birds, all the characteristic elements of Perrot’s cartoons can be found in this particular example. Bibliography: Tapisseries, dessins, peintures, gravures de René Perrot, Dessein et Tolra, 1982 -
Faisan (phaesant)
Perrot began his career as a cartoon designer at the end of the war, making almost 500 cartoons including numerous commissions from the state, most of which were woven at Aubusson. His style which is particularly rich and decorative is eminently recognisable : a crowd of butterflies or birds, most often, stands out against a background of vegetation, reminiscent of the millefleurs tapestries (which would also inspire Dom Robert). The ornithological subject, the abundance of motifs inspired by medieval « mille-fleurs » tapestries and the plain background (in this case, using the famous ‘Perrot blue’ as it was known in the Pinton workshops, repeatedly used in numerous cartoons) make our tapestry an exemplary model of Perrot's art from the 1960s onwards. Bibliography : Tapisseries, dessins, peintures, gravures de René Perrot, Dessein et Tolra, 1982 Cat. Expo. René Perrot, mon pauvre cœur est un hibou, Aubusson, Cité de la Tapisserie, 2023Aubusson tapestry woven by the Pinton workshop. With signed label. Circa 1960. -
Lente approche (slow approach)
Aubusson tapestry woven in the Braquenié workshop. With label. Circa 1960.From his long artistic career, which began in the 1950s (and which later focused mainly on sculpture), Julien produced around twenty tapestries from 1959 onwards, mainly woven by the Braquenié factory, including ‘Le commerce extérieur’ (Foreign Trade), a spectacular 12 m² public commission. His style often features female figures drawn in black, with sober colours and patterns, of which our cartoon is a prime example. Bibliography : Léon-Louis Sosset, Tapisserie contemporaine en Belgique, Perron, 1989 -
Poissons de la lune (Moon fish)
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Pinton workshop. Complete with certificate of origin. Circa 1960. Fumeron designed his first cartoons (he would ultimately make over 500) in the 1940’s, in collaboration with the Pinton workshop, he was then commissioned on numerous occasions by the state before participating in the decoration of the ocean liner “France”. His work was figurative to begin with and influenced by Lurçat, then turned towards abstraction, before coming back to a style characterised by colourful figurative and realistic depictions from the 1980’s onwards. Beneath the red moon, fish, butterflies, a lobster all frolic in a dream-like composition typical of the artist : numerous examples of these motifs can be found for instance in “Avant l’homme” Before man, woven by the Gobelins (cf Exhibition Catalogue “le Mobilier National et les Manufactures Nationales des Gobelins et de Beauvais sous la IVe République”, Beauvais 1997) -
La souche (the stump)
Fumeron designed his first cartoons (he would ultimately make over 500) in the 1940’s, in collaboration with the Pinton workshop, he was then commissioned on numerous occasions by the state before participating in the decoration of the ocean liner “France”. His work was figurative to begin with and influenced by Lurçat, then turned towards abstraction, before coming back to a style characterised by colourful figurative and realistic depictions from the 1980’s onwards. Strangely enough, despite the naturalistic title, the cartoon leans towards abstraction in a kind of refinement of Fumeron’s figurative cartoons where we can still recognise the circular yellow-sun characteristic of the artist.Aubusson tapestry woven in the Pinton workshop. With label. Circa 1960. -
Sumatra
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Four workshop. With signed label, n°EA. Circa 1960.Fumeron designed his first cartoons (he would ultimately make over 500) in the 1940’s, in collaboration with the Pinton workshop, he was then commissioned on numerous occasions by the state before participating in the decoration of the ocean liner “France”. His work was figurative to begin with and influenced by Lurçat, then turned towards abstraction, before coming back to a style characterised by colourful figurative and realistic depictions from the 1980’s onwards Fumeron's work in the 60s had a touch of the exotic about it, with his ‘Osaka’, ‘Samurai’ and ‘Monsoon’ cartoons coming to mind. But there's no literal evocation: the partially obstructed circle (Sun?) remains a leitmotif, whatever the title. -
Composition orange
Aubusson tapestry woven by le mur du nomade workshop. N°1/6. Circa 1970.Fumeron designed his first cartoons (he would ultimately make over 500) in the 1940’s, in collaboration with the Pinton workshop, he was then commissioned on numerous occasions by the state before participating in the decoration of the ocean liner “France”. His work was figurative to begin with and influenced by Lurçat, then turned towards abstraction, before coming back to a style characterised by colourful figurative and realistic depictions from the 1980’s onwards. The setting sun, the orange chromatic range and the composition on the edge between figuration and abstraction are characteristic of the artist's cartoons from this period. -
Ciel de Sienne (Sky in Sienna)
Fumeron designed his first cartoons (he would ultimately make over 500) in the 1940’s, in collaboration with the Pinton workshop, he was then commissioned on numerous occasions by the state before participating in the decoration of the ocean liner “France”. His work was figurative to begin with and influenced by Lurçat, then turned towards abstraction, before coming back to a style characterised by colourful figurative and realistic depictions from the 1980’s onwards. The title and the subject of this cartoon combine in a subtle play on words : the opposition of « terre » the earth (the colour sienna in French is “terre de Sienne” ) and “ciel” the sky allows the artist to depict, on a shaded ocre (sienna) background his birds and sun-circle, in the deorative vein so redolent of this particular artist.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Pinton workshop. N°4/6. Circa 1960. -
Le village d'Eze (the village of Eze)
In a decorative post-cubist style redolent of Toffoli, Raymond Poulet here interprets one of the most spectacular locations on the côteAubusson tapestry woven by the Jean Laurent workshop. N°3/6. Circa 1980. -
Paysage au flamboyant (landscape with flamboyant)
In a similar vein to Toffoli, Raymond Poulet criss-crossed the world and his travels provided the themes that inspired his work.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Jean Laurent workshop. N°6/6. Circa 1990. -
Couple génétique (Genetic couple)
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Pinton workshop. With label. 1976.In this work – which is apparently the only cartoon by this artist – the deft line and clear drawing technique of Trémois are immediately recognisable. He is best known for his work as an engraver and illustrator, albeit having won the Grand Prix de Rome for his painting. Also evident, his predilection for the nude : here a loving embrace and a meditation on modern science are found in association in a surprising, and very personal, juxtaposition. -
Fleurs éclatées (shattered flowers)
Known essentially as a sculptor, Segeron produced a certain number of cartoons, woven by Legoueix in Aubusson. In a variety of colours and under a number of different titles, we are confronted by a scattering, almost as though torn, of similar shape-designs rather like strange rhizomes or capillary networks.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Legoueix workshop. With label, n°1/6. Circa 1980. -
Gestation
Known essentially as a sculptor, Segeron produced a certain number of cartoons, woven by Legoueix in Aubusson. In a variety of colours and under a number of different titles, we are confronted by a scattering, almost as though torn, of similar shape-designs rather like strange rhizomes or capillary networks.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Legoueix workshop. With label, n°2/6. Circa 1980. -
Vendémiaire
The story is well known: following the commission for the ‘4 Parts of the World’ to be woven at the Gobelins, Dubreuil was one of the 3 artists, along with Gromaire and Lurçat, sent by Guiillaume Janneau, administrator of the Manufactures Nationales, to Aubusson at the end of 1939, to renovate local tapestry production (with the commission for a set of tapestries on the theme of Gardens). Although he shared Lurçat's ideas on the influence that medieval tapestry should have in revitalising the medium, his abundant and resolutely naturalistic cartoons (lacking the dreamlike quality of Coutaud, for example) distanced him from his colleague, in favour of a closer relationship with the work of Maingonnat. Our tapestry bears witness to Dubreuil's collaboration with Antoine Behna's A.R.T. (Atelier de Rénovation de la Tapisserie), of which Janneau, discredited for his role during the War, was the artistic and technical adviser. The allegorical register bears witness to Dubreuil's classicism, between academic nudes and still lifes reflecting the History of Painting. This workshop wove in both high and low heddle : the 1990 sale catalogue included one example woven in each technique. Bibliography : G. Janneau, A. Behna, Tapisseries de notre temps, 1950, ill. n°64 Millon-Robert sale catalogue 3.10.1990 n°28-29, 64Tapestry woven by Coffinet for Ami de la Paix. Circa 1945. -
Tropiques (Tropics)
On returning to France in the 1950’s after a lengthy period spent in Argentina, Berroeta produced quite a number of cartoons in a style which was first figurative (animals, human figures,...) then turned to abstraction, as in his paintings. The influence of cubism and a lyrical sense of colour cohabit here in a cartoon which could be seen as a reminiscence of South America.Aubusson tapestry woven in the Pinton workshop. Circa 1955. -
Kenya
On returning to France in the 1950’s after a lengthy period spent in Argentina, Berroeta produced quite a number of cartoons in a style which was first figurative (animals, human figures,...) then turned to abstraction, as in his paintings. Exotic inspiration is a recurrent theme in Berroeta's work, often in an allusive way: neither the animals nor the plants are definitively identifiable, together, they have an allegorical purpose.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Pinton workshop. With signed label. Circa 1960. -
Solaire (solar )
Aubusson tapestry woven in Pinton workshop. With a label signed by the artist, n°2/6. Circa 1970.Odette Caly, who specialised in the depiction of bouquets, designed numerous cartoons for Aubusson, woven in the Pinton, Henry or Hamot workshops. Her inspiration, rather rural usually, has oriented here towards more exotic flowers, highlighted by the green background. Bibliography : Multi-authored, Caly, Filmed Publications of Art and History, 1972, reproduced No. 24 -
Composition
It is perhaps the association with Pierre Vago, the architect who was her husband, that inspired Nicole Cormier to take an interest in mural art (cv. “Soleil levant” for the university at Villeneuve d’Ascq) ; in the 1970’s she designed and made hangings sewn from felt and cotton textiles and designed cartoons for tapestries some of which were woven by Pierre Daquin notably.Tapestry woven in the Saint-Cyr workshop. With signed label, n°EA1. Circa 1980. -
Papillons de cocagne (ideal butterflies)
Aubusson tapestry, woven in the Picaud workshop. Complete with certificate of origin signed by the artist. Circa 1970. Michèle Van Hout le Beau designed numerous cartoons in the 1960’s and 70’s, working in collaboration with several workshops in Aubusson and receiving some state commissions (she participated along with Soulages, Lagrange, Alechinsky and others in the decoration of the transatlantic Boeing 707’s for Air France). Her style often involves the use of strident colours (very evocative of the 1970’s) from which emerge foliage, stylised human or animal figures. This cartoon, with its acidic colours is particularly characteristic of the artist’s style ; here we can also observe, on a theme abundantly developed by Lurçat, the different way in which the butterflies are evoked : the subject is here a pretext for highly coloured, geometrical evocations approaching abstraction. -
Danseuses cambodgiennes (Cambodian dancers)
Tapestry woven at Aubusson by the Picaud workshop. Certificate of origin, n° 1/4. Circa 1965. Although somewhat overlooked now, the contribution that Maurice Ferréol made, in the 1960’s, to the design of figurative tapestry is quite remarkable. He proposed a style redolent of popular imagery where the use of pure blocks of colour exacerbates the almost childlike outline of the figures. What connects these bright and garishly coloured, masked figures to Cambodia? They are simply a pretext for a profusion of colours and motifs in the particular characteristic style of Ferréol. -
Aubusson
Aubusson tapestry woven in the Andraud-Dethève workshop. 1943.Maurice André settled in Aubusson for the duration of the second world war. A founding member of the group “Tapisserie de France” and a member of the A.P.C.T. (Association des Peintres-Cartonniers de Tapisserie), he developed a personal style, different from that of Lurçat, characterised by rigorous, cubist-influenced flat areas of colour, often using a limited palette ; he received large-scale public commissions for the Council of Europe in Strasbourg (“L’Europe unie dans le Travail et la Paix”) or for the French pavilion at the Brussels Exhibition in 1958 (“La Technique moderne au service de l’Homme”). Gradually (as with Wogensky and Prassinos,...) his style evolved towards more abstraction, firstly lyrical and then more and more geometric, in a way very similar to Matégot. « Aubusson », Maurice André’s first tapestry cartoon, illustrates both how he adheres to Lurçat’s principles of technique (counted threads, large flat areas of colour...) and how his aesthetic can be seen to be different (as it is from Gromaire’s own treatment of the same subject some years earlier). His closest influence at the time is in fact Dubrueil, his father-in-law, his own stylistic emancipation would come a little later. The historical importance of the cartoon is undeniable : it is one of the rare illustrations of the town (even more synthesised than Gromaire’s version) at a time when the Tapestry Renaissance was in its infancy. -
Fleurs et feuilles (flowers and leaves)
Multi-talented artist (poet, lyricist, painter and even antiques dealer,…) Saint-Martin, who assisted Lurçat at the beginning of the 1950’s, started designing his own cartoons in 1956 and they were woven in the Braquenié workshop. His is a dream-like, stylised and dramatised world : here, symbols of order and discipline (the still life composition, the wrought iron balustrade...) contrast with the unsettling, unfettered profusion of the branches on each side.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Braquenié workshop. With label. Circa 1960. -
Le paon (the peacock)
Tapestry woven by the Baudonnet workshop. With label. 1959.Lurçat approached Saint-Saëns, originally a painter of murals, in 1940. And during the war the latter produced the first of his allegorical masterpieces, tapestries reflecting indignation, combat, resistance : “les Vierges folles (the foolish virgins), “Thésée et le Minotaure” (Theseus and the Minotaur). At the end of the war, as a natural development he joined up with Lurçat, whose convictions he shared (concerning a simplified palette, outlined cartoons with colours indicated by pre-ordained numbers, and the specific nature of tapestry design…) at the A.P.C.T. (Association des Peintres-cartonniers de Tapisserie). His universe, where the human figure, stretched, elongated, ooccupies an important place (particularly when compared to his companions Lurçat or Picart le Doux), pivots around traditional themes : woman, the Commedia dell’arte, Greek mythology… refined by the brilliance of the colours and the simplification of the layout. His work would evolve later, in the 1960’s, towards cartoons of a more lyrical design, almost abstract where elemental and cosmic forces would dominate. The number and variety of animals used in his tapestries by Saint-Saëns is not so rich as others of his contemporaries such as Lurçat, Perrot or Dom Robert, principally known for his peacocks. Here the use, as if off the ground, of a similar motif (despite the fact that it more ressembles a cockerel than a peacock) illustrates the variety of solutions employed by the painter-cartonniers of the period. Bibliography : Exhibition catalogue Saint-Saëns, galerie La Demeure, 1970 Exhibition catalogue Saint-Saëns, the tapestries, Aubusson, Musée départemental de la Tapisserie, 1987 Exhibition catalogue Marc Saint-Saëns, tapestries, 1935-1979, Angers, Musée Jean Lurçat et de la Tapisserie Contemporaine 1997-1998 -
Soleil (Sun)
Lurçat approached Saint-Saëns, originally a painter of murals, in 1940. And during the war the latter produced the first of his allegorical masterpieces, tapestries reflecting indignation, combat, resistance : “les Vierges folles (the foolish virgins), “Thésée et le Minotaure” (Theseus and the Minotaur). At the end of the war, as a natural development he joined up with Lurçat, whose convictions he shared (concerning a simplified palette, outlined cartoons with colours indicated by pre-ordained numbers, and the specific nature of tapestry design...) at the A.P.C.T. (Association des Peintres-cartonniers de Tapisserie). His universe, where the human figure, stretched, elongated, ooccupies an important place (particularly when compared to his companions Lurçat or Picart le Doux), pivots around traditional themes : woman, the Commedia dell’arte, Greek mythology... refined by the brilliance of the colours and the simplification of the layout. His work would evolve later, in the 1960’s, towards cartoons of a more lyrical design, almost abstract where elemental and cosmic forces would dominate. In the 1960’s, Saint-Saëns moved towards a more abstract style using bright, acidic and highly contrasted colours, and accentuated his attraction to the grand themes of Nature “the seasons”, “lightning”...) Bibliography : Exhibition catalogue Saint-Saëns, galerie La Demeure, 1970 Exhibition catalogue Saint-Saëns, the tapestries, Aubusson, Musée départemental de la Tapisserie, 1987 Exhibition catalogue Marc Saint-Saëns, tapestries, 1935-1979, Angers, Musée Jean Lurçat et de la Tapisserie Contemporaine 1997-1998Tapestry woven by the Baudonnet workshop. N°1/6. Circa 1970. -
Le jardin d'amour (the garden of love)
Tapestry, probably woven in Aubusson. 1947. Lurçat approached Saint-Saëns, originally a painter of murals, in 1940. And during the war the latter produced the first of his allegorical masterpieces, tapestries reflecting indignation, combat, resistance : “les Vierges folles (the foolish virgins), “Thésée et le Minotaure” (Theseus and the Minotaur). At the end of the war, as a natural development he joined up with Lurçat, whose convictions he shared (concerning a simplified palette, outlined cartoons with colours indicated by pre-ordained numbers, and the specific nature of tapestry design…) at the A.P.C.T. (Association des Peintres-cartonniers de Tapisserie). His universe, where the human figure, stretched, elongated, ooccupies an important place (particularly when compared to his companions Lurçat or Picart le Doux), pivots around traditional themes : woman, the Commedia dell’arte, Greek mythology… refined by the brilliance of the colours and the simplification of the layout. His work would evolve later, in the 1960’s, towards cartoons of a more lyrical design, almost abstract where elemental and cosmic forces would dominate. ‘Le jardin d'amour’, an evocative allegory of the terrestrial paradise sometimes illustrated in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, bears witness to the classical references of Saint-Saëns who, in the same year, conceived "Orphée" and "La Comédie italienne" : theatre, ancient myths and biblical references (the “Vierges folles” cartoon also comes to mind) were omnipresent sources of inspiration. Bibliography : Exhibition catalogue Saint-Saëns, the tapestries, Aubusson, Musée départemental de la Tapisserie, 1987 Exhibition catalogue Marc Saint-Saëns, tapestries, 1935-1979, Angers, Musée Jean Lurçat et de la Tapisserie Contemporaine 1997-1998 -
Le réviseur (the reviser)
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Picaud workshop. With label, n°1/8. Circa 1980. Marc Petit met Jean Lurçat in 1954, went to Aubusson in 1955, exhibited his work for the first time at La Demeure in 1956, became a member of the A.P.C.T. (Association des Peintres-Cartonniers de Tapisserie) in 1958. After this lightning start to his career, he produced hundreds of cartoons, in a style all his own, where long-legged waders and acrobats wend in and out of dreamscapes. An amusing design, which could be interpreted as the illustration of the antithesis of an author and his editor : here depicted by the curious association of a bird and a fish, in an extremely lively colour scheme. -
Aube quarte (fourth dawn)
Marc Petit met Jean Lurçat in 1954, went to Aubusson in 1955, exhibited his work for the first time at La Demeure in 1956, became a member of the A.P.C.T. (Association des Peintres-Cartonniers de Tapisserie) in 1958. After this lightning start to his career, he produced hundreds of cartoons, in a style all his own, where long-legged waders and acrobats wend in and out of dreamscapes. Again, economy of means, with broad flat tints and a narrow chromatic range, for a singular dawn. a theme that the artist is fond of (cf. ‘le pas de l'aube’, but also “Aurore”, ‘la nuit s'éteint’ ....). As for the flock of passing birds, this is another leitmotif, seen in ‘aube courte’ for example.Aubusson tapestry woven in the Picaud workshop. With signed label, n°2/4. Circa 1970. -
Composition
Little is known about the artist, but she created a number of cartoons, which would be woven in the 60’s by Tabard and Pinton.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Pinton workshop. With label. Circa 1965. -
Envie et Gourmandise (les pêchés capitaux) (Envy and Gluttony – the seven deadly sins)
Aubusson tapestry woven in the Legoueix workshop. Complete with certificate of origin signed by the artist. 1956. After the traditional completion of some mural paintings in the 1930’s, he then arrived in Aubusson in 1936, became closely associated with Picart le Doux in 1947 and then joined the A.P.C.T. (Association des Peintres-Cartonniers de Tapisserie). From then on he devoted himself to tapestry with zeal and designed 167 cartoons, at first figurative following on from Picart le Doux and Saint-Saëns, then, influenced by the scientific themes that he dealt with, tending more towards abstraction. In 1981, two years before his death, he donated his studio to the Musée départemental de la tapisserie in Aubusson. « He considers… in this short but extremely witty series, the vices and his treatment reveals a malicious sense of humour returning in an original way to a theme much used during the middle ages.” (Exhibition catalogue “Hommage à Louis-Marie Jullien, Aubusson, Musée départemental de la Tapisserie, 1983, p.4) Here the subject is a pretext for the representation of animals such as can be found in the work of his contemporaries, notably Picart le Doux with whom he was closely associated. According to the 1983 exhibition catalogue (which is considered to be the catalogue raisonné and in which this piece appears as number 53), only one tapestry was ever woven from this cartoon: it is thus unique. Bibliography : Exhibition catalogue Hommage à Louis-Marie Jullien, Aubusson, Musée départemental de la Tapisserie, 1983 -
Les enfants (children)
Toffoli produced a large number of tapestries in collaboration with the Robert Four workshop from 1976 onwards, designing several hundred cartoons. In them we find post-cubist transparent effects which are characteristic of the artist, as indeed are the subjects treated. Thus Toffoli’s tapestries do not differ from his painting : travelling for inspiration, here he illustrates children playing in a street on the other side of the planet.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Four workshop. With illegible label, n°EA. Circa 1980. -
Le grand large (the wide, open sea)
Toffoli produced a large number of tapestries in collaboration with the Robert Four workshop from 1976 onwards, designing several hundred cartoons. In them we find post-cubist transparent effects which are characteristic of the artist, as indeed are the subjects treated. Thus Toffoli’s tapestries do not differ from his painting : travelling for inspiration, here he illustrates a junk observed during trips to the far East.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Four workshop. N°1/6. Circa 1980. -
Marchands (Traders)
Toffoli produced a large number of tapestries in collaboration with the Robert Four workshop from 1976 onwards, designing several hundred cartoons. In them we find post-cubist transparent effects which are characteristic of the artist, as indeed are the subjects treated. Thus Toffoli’s tapestries do not differ from his painting : travelling for inspiration, here he illustrates scenes observed during his travels in South America.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Four workshop. With signed label, n°EA2/2. Circa 1980. -
Les enfants du soleil (Children of the sun)
Toffoli produced a large number of tapestries in collaboration with the Robert Four workshop from 1976 onwards, designing several hundred cartoons. In them we find post-cubist transparent effects which are characteristic of the artist, as indeed are the subjects treated. Thus Toffoli’s tapestries do not differ from his painting : travelling for inspiration, here he illustrates scenes observed during his travels in South America.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Four workshop. With label, n°EA2. Circa 1980. -
Foujita is one of a number of artists whose work was woven at Bièvres at the Moulin de Vauboyen (hence the mark MV woven into the tapestries), which was transformed by Pierre de Tartas into an arts centre in 1959 and devoted to figurative art. Many noteworthy names would pass through including Cocteau, Foujita, Erni, Volti ... among others, who would produce much work, often monumental, as well as realisations in the applied arts (notably book illustrations) Foujita realised only a few tapestry cartoons, all of which were produced at Bièvres by Pierre de Tartas. In this particular case, unlike the rest of his production, his style is different from that of his paintings : almost monochrome, stylised (quite different from the lithe brushwork of the artist); as for the biblical theme, it can be seen as the result of his recent conversion to catholicism. Another tapestry, of similar dimensions and subject matter, but in a differing, lighter colour scheme, was also woven at Bièvres.
Adam et Eve
Tapestry woven in the Moulin de Vauboyen workshop. 1967. -
La grâce (grace)
Kozo Inoué moved to Paris in 1960 and devoted himself mainly to screen printing. His work was woven by the Four workshop from 1984 onwards. In his works, all of which present “grace” unfolding petals, leaves or butterflies, as if suspended, single (or occasionally multiple) motifs against a contrasting, shaded background.Aubusson tapestry woven by the Four workshop. With signed label, n°5/6. Circa 1990.
