MURAL

Magdalena Abakanowicz Abakan red, 1969 © Foundation Magdalena Marta Abakanowicz Kosmowska and Jan Kosmowski Tate : presented anonymously · 2009

AND
SPATIAL

HOW THE LAUSANNE BIENNALS 1962-1969

PRESS KIT

TRANSFORMED THE WORLD OF TAPESTRY

29 JUNE – 6 OCTOBER 2019

CENTRE CULTUREL ET ARTISTIQUE

JEAN LURCAT · AUBUSSON

CURATED BY

The EU and the Region invest on this project

2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PRESENTATION OF THE EXHIBITION 5
EXHIBITION ITINERARY 8
LENDERS 13
THE ARTISTS PRESENT 14
THE ARTISTS - FOCUS 15
THE CATALOGUE 16
VISUALS FOR THE PRESS 1/1 17
VISUALS FOR THE PRESS 2/2 18
AROUND THE EXHIBITION 19
PRACTICAL INFORMATION 20
WORTH SEEING IN AUBUSSON IN 2019 21
CONTACTS 22

3
Arthur Jobin, Psychedelic cathedral, 1969. Fondation Toms Pauli
collection, Lausanne. Photo: Arthur Jobin

4
PRESENTATION OF THE EXHIBITION
MURAL AND SPATIAL
HOW THE LAUSANNE BIENNIALS 1962-1969 TRANSFORMED
THE WORLD OF TAPESTRY

The Cité internationale de la tapisserie in Lausanne” between French artists and the Swiss
Aubusson is joining forces with the Fondation organisation. While wall tapestry focussed on a
Toms Pauli of Lausanne to present an search for textures, more and more artists were
international exhibition devoted to the beginnings exploring the three-dimensional opportunities
of the Lausanne Biennials in the 1960s, and the offered by the medium. The Biennial of 1967
“shakeup” they caused in the art of tapestry and revealed the first signs of emancipation from the
its global history. The exhibition will be held from wall, in particular with Swiss artist Elsi Giauque’s
28 June to 6 October 2019, in a space designed Column, the first textile work to be suspended in
for monumental tapestry at the Centre Jean- empty space. The 1969 edition confirmed these
Lurçat in Aubusson. changes with numerous pieces moving off the walls
to become textile sculptures. The exhibition was
A seismograph becomes an earthquake presented the same year at the Manufacture des
Gobelins in Paris, introducing the French public to
The exhibition presents the rapid metamorphoses these new textile expressions. From 1970 onwards,
that occurred on the global tapestry landscape in the different currents cohabited and explored their
the space of seven years, from 1962 to 1969. The own individual paths which often crossed but rarely
concepts, rules, practices and techniques that had merged.
been in force since the Second World War were
radically challenged at the first Lausanne Tapestry Works selected for the exhibition
Biennials. Designed by Pierre Pauli, his wife Alice
and Jean Lurçat, who was then at the height of his Thanks to a world-wide research, some 35
fame, these international events aimed to present tapestries have been chosen for the exhibition, the
the state of wall tapestries at the time. Very quickly, same works that hung on the Biennial’s walls at the
however, the biennials became the epicentre of time.
an apparently destructive upheaval in so-called The choice of works illustrates classic French
“traditional” tapestry and the crucible of a new, wall production through Lurçat and his painter-
freer approach that would lead to three-dimensional cartoonist friends (Prassinos, Tourlière), as well
works. as some great painters’ works woven by national
manufactories or by Aubusson ateliers (Picasso,
Female creators change everything Delaunay, Estève). Other woven tapestries show
the diversity of European and American production
The challenge arrived with young artists and creators, (Somville, Rousseau-Vermette, Yoors, Adams,
primarily from Switzerland and central and eastern Scholten).
Europe, who would bring about fundamental change On the other side are Polish artists who made a big
right from the first edition in 1962 by breaking with impression (Abakanowicz, Owidzka, Sadley) as well
the principle of the artist/artisan pair (the project as the first three-dimensional creations (Giauque,
creator with the holder of the know-how). While Jobin, Abakanowicz, Daquin, Lindgren).
woven tapestry had previously been the purview
of male artists, this new paradigm opened the door Lenders
to young female visual artists who took on both
roles. Female artists became the majority in 1967 The Cité internationale de la tapisserie and Fondation
at the Lausanne Biennials and have continued to Toms Pauli will present a number of pieces from
predominate in the Fiber Art movement until the their collections. The Tate Modern in London has
present. agreed to lend Magdalena Abakanowicz’s 1969
Abakan Red on an exceptional basis. The Mobilier
Released from the wall National in Paris and the Central Textiles Museum
in Lodz, Poland were also contacted. Lenders also
By accepting weaving and embroidery, the second include the Yoors Foundation in New York, UNESCO
Biennial of 1965 obliterated the traditional in Paris for a piece by Le Corbusier, and the Musée
technical monopoly and led to the “quarrel of national des beaux- arts du Québec.
5
Curators of the exhibition

Bruno Ythier, curator of Cité internationale de la

tapisserie, Aubusson, and Giselle Eberhard Cotton,
director of Fondation Toms Pauli, Lausanne.

From tapestry to Fiber Art

From Tapestry to Fiber Art. The Lausanne Biennials

1962-1995 by Giselle Eberhard Cotton and Magali
Junet of the Fondation Toms Pauli was published in
late 2017, and covers all of the Biennials of Lausanne.
It will be available for sale at the exhibition.

The Fondation Toms Pauli The Cité internationale de la tapisserie

Established in Lausanne in 2000, the Fondation The Cité internationale de la tapisserie was
Toms Pauli is active in Switzerland and abroad. Its established in response to the inscription of Aubusson
main missions are to study, preserve and promote tapestry know-how in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural
its collections of ancient and modern tapestries. Heritage of Humanity in 2009.
This heritage is owned by the canton of Vaud and This public institution was established by the
is composed of the Toms collection, a prestigious Nouvelle-Aquitaine regional council, the Creuse
collection of 16th-19th century European tapestries département and the Creuse Grand Sud community of
and embroideries bequeathed by Mary Toms in communes with funding from the French government
1993, as well as a collection of contemporary and professionals. The Cité internationale de la
textile works given by the Association Pierre Pauli tapisserie is based on a museum with collections
in 2000, supplemented by many new acquisitions branded “musée de France”. Its new building was
since. inaugurated in 2016 by François Holland following
Through research and loans, the Fondation the restoration of the former École Nationale d’Art
participates regularly in major international Décoratif (ENAD) of Aubusson. Its unusual exhibition
exhibitions dedicated to tapestry. It has also itinerary is an invitation to explore six centuries of
inherited the scientific archives of the International tapestries in Aubusson through an immersive display
Centre for Modern and Ancient Tapestry (CiTAM), inspired by theatrical techniques.
which organised the Biennials from 1962 to1995. It The Cité internationale de la tapisserie is a cultural,
preserves the artists’ files and the specialised library economic and tourism development project, part of a
from the Biennials. Following the establishment of revitalisation strategy for a vulnerable rural territory.
an on-line database in 2012 containing the 911 The Cité internationale de la tapisserie aims to
works presented at the Lausanne Biennials (www. preserve and develop Aubusson’s tapestry heritage
lausanne.ch/citam), the Fondation published De la by supporting the industry that has existed for
tapisserie au Fiber Art. Les Bienniales de Lausanne almost six centuries in the Aubusson region
1962-1995 in 2017. The book is dedicated to the (spinning, dyeing, cartooning, weaving, restoration,
history of the Biennials that are closely linked to for a total of approximately 150 jobs). The Cité
the development of Nouvelle Tapisserie in Europe internationale de la tapisserie aims to share this
and around the world. heritage through a training centre and also has an
By 2020, Fondation Toms Pauli will take up ambitious contemporary low-warp tapestry creation
residence in the new Musée des Beaux-Arts policy. In addition to the traditional museum, the
building in Lausanne, in the heart of a museum Cité internationale de la tapisserie is also home to a
district near the train station, allowing it to hold resource centre, the tapestry restoration workshop of
temporary exhibitions and present its collections. the Mobilier National, and professional workshops for
textile creators.

6
 Elsi Giauque, Virtual Spatial Element, 1969-1972, 4 x 4 x 4 m.
Collection Mudac, Lausanne. Photo : Arnaud Conne
7
EXHIBITION ITINERARY
Some 30 works are presented in four rooms at the Centre culturel et artistique Jean-Lurçat
in Aubusson. These rooms belonged to the former departmental tapestry museum and were
designed to accommodate monumental tapestries. The exhibition looks back on the first four
Lausanne Biennials.

NOUVELLE TAPISSERIE:
THE BEGINNING
By Giselle Eberhard Cotton

FIRST BIENNIAL - 1962

PANORAMA OF GLOBAL TAPESTRY

The city of Lausanne inaugurated the first International Biennial of Tapestry in 1962. This
event, created by CITAM (International Centre for Modern and Ancient Tapestry), aimed to
present the vitality and creativity of contemporary tapestry to the public. This major project
was imagined and carrried out by Jean Lurçat and Pierre Pauli, Commissioner General of the
Biennial.
It was important to Lurçat that only monumental mural tapestries be accepted, and not so-
called “apartment” tapestries, to ensure that “the public is amazed and the Biennial creates
an impression of grandeur.” Therefore, preference was given to very large works (12 m2),
consistent with the concepts of décor and wall art.
Selections were made based on the recommendation of national committees, with the ex-
ception of France that had the largest delegation, representing one-quarter of participants
(15 out of 59). Artists included big names in painting, mural art and tapestry (Lurçat, Pras-
sinos, Somville, Le Corbusier) and illustrated the work of the main European manufactories
and national workshops (Gobelins, Beauvais, Mechelen, Portalegre), those of Aubusson and
Felletin and lesser known ones from the Netherlands, Germany, Canada, Italy and Poland.
This first edition already revealed daring and less conventional tapestry. Alongside the tra-
ditional weaver who executed and/or interpreted a design created by the painter-cartoonist,
the exhibition already included artist-weavers who imagined and created the work entirely on
their own (Rousseau-Vermette).

Mariette Rousseau-Vermette, Hiver canadien, 1961, 2.13 x 5.40 m. Collection Musée national des beaux-arts du
Québec. © Estate of Mariette Rousseau-Vermette and Claude Vermette. Photo: MNBAQ, Jean-Guy Kérouac
8
Maureen Hodge, Winterwood, 1965, 1.75 x 4.60 m. Artist’s collection. Photo: Maureen Hodge.

Of the many tapestries on display in 1962, the compositions by Polish artists (Abakanowicz
Owidzka, Sadley) caused the greatest stir. Despite being made on low-warp looms, the sur-
face and structure of the weavings were much coarser, surprising a public accustomed to the
perfect finish of works by large conventional workshops.

SECOND BIENNIAL - 1965

THE “QUARREL OF LAUSANNE”

Following a first trip to Poland with Pierre Pauli, art critic André Kuenzi published an article
entitled La tapisserie de demain est née en Pologne (The tapestry of tomorrow is born in Po-
land) in the Gazette de Lausanne in the spring of 1963 in which he supported the innovations
underway in eastern European countries. While this article didn’t cause much of a stir, remai-
ning confined within regional boundaries, the press release announcing the second Biennial
and listing its selection criteria, caused an uproar. Written by Kuenzi, it opened the Biennial to
new weaving techniques and forms of expression.
French painter-cartoonists, including Lurçat, took umbrage at the release’s tone and innuen-
do. Acting as their spokesman with the press, Prassinos expressed their shock and displea-
sure at being regarded as passé. He was, however, in favour of the Lausanne Biennial opening
in other directions as long as it was not to the detriment of artists using the traditional tech-
nique.
While painter-cartoonists are able to express themselves naturally through numbered car-
toons, other artists are required to adapt their design to the constraints of weaving and prefer
close collaboration with a weaver (Le Corbusier, Adam).
Encouraged by the smaller dimensions imposed (8 m2), all types of artists decided to try their
hand at the medium. This led the French to fear losing prestige and international dominance
to the work of skilled artists they considered as amateurs. Newcomers were moving away
from the concept of full-weaving, instead exploring openings and empty spaces (Buić) in their
work, or combining wool with other materials (Hodge).
Creators from central and eastern Europe (Poland, Yugoslavia, Romania, Bulgaria, Czechoslo-
vakia), most of whom were young female art school graduates, distinguished themselves
once more. Their focus on unusual materials—sisal, cotton, flax, hemp, goat hair—that they
often dyed themselves, was remarkable. They concentrated on contrasting textures, reliefs,
irregularities in the warp and/or weft. The idea and feeling are translated directly in unique
weaves.

9
THIRD BIENNIAL - 1967
NEW TECHNIQUES AND MATERIALS

The third Biennial showed that the art of tapestry

was undergoing as deep a renewal during the first
half of the 1960s as it had following the Second
World War.
In order to encourage a wider variety of applicants,
an international jury was charged with selecting the
participants based on a written application. French
painter-cartoonists were also required to apply, but
refused to submit to a jury examination. Several ta-
pestries were borrowed from the Mobilier National
(Estève, Delaunay) to compensate for their absence.
In order to provide a forum for the profusion of crea-
tions, but also to ease tensions, embroidery (Funk),
application (Chevalley) and other forms of research
were presented in a special section where the first
spatial works appeared (Giauque, Lindgren).
At the third Biennial, women represented more than Pierre Chevalley, Tapisserie n°4 (Thème I II III), 1967,
half of the artists selected. Their proportion grew 2.96 x 3.04 m. Fondation Toms Pauli collection, Lausanne.
constantly over the following decade, making Nou- Photo : Fondation Toms Pauli.
velle Tapisserie the only artistic movement repre-
sented by a majority of women artists.

FOURTH BIENNIAL - 1969

TAPESTRY CLAIMS SPACE
In 1969, the rules of the fourth Biennial broadly per-
mitted any work considered “as proceeding original-
ly from the art of tapestry”.
That year, a number of spectacular three-dimensio- Starting in the late 1960s, and thanks to the
nal pieces (Abakanowicz, Daquin) stole the show large laboratory represented by the Lausanne
from wall tapestries. The selected artists included International Tapestry Biennials, traditional
ten Swiss, to represent the second largest natio- and wall weaving was challenged by spatial
nal delegation after France. They presented a re- creations that had been freed from the confines
markable inventive force with very personal reflec- of the wall.
tions on space (Jobin, Giauque). Forms, volumes and reliefs were exploited
The event was hosted at the Mobilier National by freely and exuberantly. The new artists were
Jean Coural, the institution’s general administrator inspired by their countries’ traditions that they
and member of the Lausanne jury. Although it was reinterpreted, or created very personal projects
less successful than expected, the fourth Biennial that the public sometimes had difficulty calling
marked an easing of the quarrel between pain- “tapestries”.
ter-cartoonists and textile artists: the guarantors of This is why the term Fiber Art, born in the United
a traditional discipline and those for whom the scope States, is now used to describe such textile
of reflection never ends now coexisted peacefully. works.

10
THE IMPACT OF THE
LAUSANNE BIENNIALS
ON FRENCH TAPESTRY

By Bruno Ythier

At the origin of the Biennials was a friendship,

between Jean Lurçat and Pierre and Alice Pauli,
gallery owners in Lausanne. CITAM (International
Centre for Modern and Ancient Tapestry) was born
of this long and fruitful relationship. It had two ma-
jor projects: the construction of an immense ta-
pestry museum and the establishment of a bien-
nial contemporary tapestry event. Only the Biennial
would come about, with a first edition planned for
1962. Lurçat and the Paulis wanted it to serve as a
“seismograph” of what was happening on the glo-
bal tapestry landscape.
Lurçat aspired to internationalise “tapestry re-
newal”, so he encouraged the creation of workshops
in countries around the world. He remained the A painter-cartoonist tapestry.
greatest proponent and the most prolific artist of Jean Lurçat, Jubilation, 1964. Cité internationale de la tapis-
this tapestry renewal movement: the artist created serie collection, Aubusson. Photo: Eric Roger
his cartoons, and the weaver wove the work, with
all details planned by the creator. Lurçat and all the
other artist-cartoonists with him held this artist/ar-
tisan relationship to be a founding dogma.
The first Biennial did open its doors in 1962, and
artists, critics and collectors immediately discove-
red that the “seismograph” had in fact become an
earthquake.
Painter-cartoonist Marc Petit, born in 1932, reports
that in his discussions at the time with artist-cartoo-
nists around Lurçat the most common word used to
describe the first biennial was “shocking”. It was
shocking because their well-established technical
drawing and writing (in a movement returning to
medieval weaving techniques) were being replaced
by the materials and textures of a “Nouvelle Tapis-
serie” primarily in central Europe, causing a violent
aesthetic shock, just like a concert would that put
Vivaldi and John Cage together on the same stage.
What’s more, the founding dogma of the artist/ar-
tisan pair was being obliterated. Many of the works
exhibited—primarily Polish, but also Canadian, for
example—were conceived and woven by the same
person, with the artist becoming the weaver.
Then, the male monopoly of French artists exhi-
biting at Lausanne was shaken up by the strong
representation of women from other countries,
a phenomenon that would grow very quickly with An interpretive tapestry.
each new edition. Pablo Picasso, Two Clowns, 1.93 x 1.43 m. Cité internationale
de la tapisserie collection, Aubusson. Photo: Nicolas Roger.

11
At the second Biennial in 1965, shock turned to hos-
tility. This was the year of the famous “quarrel of Lau-
sanne” where the French used approval of embroi-
dery techniques in works admitted to the biennial as
a pretext to threaten to boycott the event. Pressure
rose in 1963 with virulent attacks by Swiss journalist
André Kuenzi. His article “La tapisserie de demain est
née en Pologne” (The tapestry of tomorrow is born
in Poland), included the tagline “This isn’t Aubusson,
it’s Warsaw!”. It is unlikely that few issues of the Ga-
zette de Lausanne were ever shared as much as this
one was in the Creuse département.
Galerie La Demeure, the Parisian headquarters of
the tapestry renewal and of painter-cartoonists was
the central for French artists’ epistolary rispostes:
Tourlière, Prassinos, Saint-Saens and many others
stepped forward to criticise the Swiss changes to the
organisation of the Biennials and thereby directly at-
tack this Nouvelle Tapisserie, and the Polish form in
particular.
The quarrel of Lausanne tempered another purely
French squabble in which painter-cartoonists, who
drew their own cartoons, challenged the relevance of
artist tapestries (Picasso, Le Corbusier, Arp, Braque,
Matisse, etc.) that required an intermediary, because
for these works the artists had a pre-existing work
transcribed onto a tapestry without having created
the cartoons themselves. Basically, the Lausanne
dispute gave them the opportunity to band together
against a “common enemy”.
The 1967 Biennial added even more fuel to the fire
with the presentation of Elsi Giauque’s column, the
first three-dimensional tapestry suspended in space.
With it, the dogma of the tapestry hanging exclusively
on the wall was overturned.
In 1969, everyone realised that textile art was being
modernised in different directions that were not ne-
cessarily exclusive. Some artists, like Thomas Gleb
and Mario Prassinos, picked up their pens yet again
to write about textiles. More and more independent
workshops were being established that integrated
variations of materials and textures in so-called “tra-
ditional” weaving, and renewing the artist/artisan re-
lationship (Atelier St Cyr, Atelier 3, Atelier Plasse Le
Caisne). Finally, weaver-creators founded the plane-
tary Fiber Art movement, with Lausanne as its capital
for 30 years.
The event hosted by Jean Coural at the Mobilier Na-
tional served as a symbol of this appeasement. In au-
tumn of 1969, he held the first presentation in France
of works from the fourth Biennial, at the same time as
an exhibition covering “25 Years of French Tapestry”.
Both events were held at the Carré des Gobelins in
Paris.
In a way, the “Mural and Spatial” exhibition cele-
brates 50 years of this federating event.

12
LENDERS
In addition to pieces from the collections of the
Fondation Toms Pauli and of the Cité internationale
de la tapisserie, works have been lent by both
European and North American institutions:

Tate, London, United Kingdom

St John’s Kirk, Perth, Scotland, United Kingdom
Maureen Hodge (artist’s collection), United Kingdom

Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, Québec,

Canada

Denver Art Museum, Denver, United States

Yoors Foundation New York, New York, United States

Museum für Gestaltung, Zurich, Switzerland

Eigdenössische Technische Hochschule, Zurich,
Switzerland
Collection d’art de la Banque cantonale vaudoise,
Lausanne, Switzerland
Musée de design et d’arts appliqués contemporains
- MUDAC, Lausanne, Switzerland

TextielMuseum, Tilburg, Netherlands

Central Museum of Textiles, Łódź, Poland

TAMAT - Centre d’art contemporain du textile de la

Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles, Tournai, Belgium

UNESCO headquarters, Paris, France

Mobilier National, Paris, France
Château des Ducs de Bretagne, Nantes, France

Mark Adams, Flight of Angels, 1962, Denver Art Museum

Collection, Neusteter Textile Collection, Gift of the E. Mark Adams
and Beth van Hoesen Adams Trust. Photo: CiTAM archives.

13
ARTISTS
Magdalena Abakanowicz, Poland (1930-2017)
Henri-Georges Adam, France (1904-1967)
Mark Adams, United States (1925-2006)
Archie Brennan, Great Britain (1931)
Jagoda Buić, Croatia (1930)
Guilherme Camarinha, Portugal (1913-1994)
Pierre Chevalley, Switzerland (1926-2006)
Sonia Delaunay, Ukraine / France (1885-1979)
Barbara Falkowska, Poland (1931)
Lissy Funk, Switzerland (1909-2005)
Elsi Giauque, Switzerland (1900-1989)
Maureen Hodge, Great Britain (1941)
Arthur Jobin, Switzerland (1927-2000)
Le Corbusier, Switzerland/France (1887-1965)
Charlotte Lindgren, Canada (1931)
Jean Lurçat, France (1892-1966)
Alfred Manessier, France (1911-1993)
Jolanta Owidzka, Poland (1927)
Pablo Picasso, Spain (1881-1973)
Mario Prassinos, France (1916-1985)
Françoise Ragno, Switzerland (1936)
Mariette Rousseau-Vermette, Canada (1926-
2006)
Wojciech Sadley, Poland (1932)
Désirée Scholten-Van de Rivière, Netherlands
(1920-1987)
Roger Somville, Belgium (1923-2014)
Michel Tourlière, France (1925-2004)
Raoul Ubac, Belgium/France (1910-1985)
Maria-Helena Vieira Da Silva, Portugal/France
(1908-1992)
Jan Yoors, Belgium/United States (1922-1977)
Magdalena Abakanowicz, Abakan red, 1969, 4 x 4 x 4 m.
Tate collection, London: presented anonymously 2009.
© Foundation Magdalena Marta Abakanowicz Kosmowska and
Jan Kosmowski. Photo: Stamm & Saxod, Lausanne.
14
THE ARTISTS - FOCUS

MAGDALENA ABAKANOWICZ ELSI GIAUQUE

(1930-2017) (1900-1989)

Born in Falenty (Poland), she studied This artist was born in Wald
at the Warsaw Academy Fine Arts (Switzerland). For four years starting
from 1950 to 1955. In the early in 1918, she was a student of Sophie
1960s, she abandoned painting and Taeuber-Arp at the Ecole des Arts
sculpture, devoting herself almost exclusively to
Appliqués in Zurich, where she also taught for 20
weaving: first with Maria Laszkiewicz, who taught her
weaving techniques, then with her own workshop years.
where personal research led her to explore relief, In the 1940s, she was a pioneer in weaving research,
materials and space. Abakanowicz was present at creating her first tapestry floating in space in 1945.
the first Biennial of 1962, then regularly until 1979. She married interior designer Giauque Fernand, with
The artist’s work is structured around vegetal and whom she sought to bring art into interiors, primarily
animal materials, but artificial fibres as well. Its by designing textiles and furniture. At the same time,
pace is inspired by nature, in a slow, precise process her reflection led her to create her works based on
unique to the qualities of the materials and that the environment, whether natural or urban.
leaves room for surprise. Her sculptures evoke living She continued her textile research throughout
beings moving in space and that escape concepts
her career, and even more extensively following
and aesthetic patterns.
“Abakans”, derived from the artist’s name, are retirement. In her workshop at her home in Ligerz,
compositions in relief or three dimensions, generally she dedicated most of her time to experiments
executed using sisal and sometimes perceived and research into colours, geometric forms and
as threatening because of their monumental size transparency, assisted by her collaborator Käthi
and wild texture. In 1969, Abakanowicz’s flexible Wenger since 1951. She was acknowledged as a
sculptures caused a stir in New York, Amsterdam pioneer of Nouvelle Tapisserie for her airy woven
and Lausanne. The immense Abakan Red made an constructions of threads and colours presented at
unforgettable impression at the fourth Biennial, the Biennials in 1967 and 1969.
launching the artist’s international career.

JAN YOORS
(1922-1977)
MARK ADAMS
(1925-2006) The son of painter and glassmaker
Eugène Yoors, Jan Yoors was born
Born in 1925 in Port Plain (New York), in Antwerp. He spent part of his
he studied painting at the University adolescence with a group of gypsies,
of Syracuse in New York, and abstract before joining the Resistance during
expressionist painting in particular the Second World War. Yoors was an atypical
with Hans Hoffmann. Impressed by character.
the medieval tapestries at the Met Cloisters Museum He belonged to a family of self-taught artists:
in New York, he painter, photographer, sculptor, writer, director
began exploring the tapestry medium in 1952. He and creator of tapestries. He settled in London at
worked with Jean Lurçat in St-Céré in 1955 and the end of the war, beginning to design tapestries.
spent time at the Ecole Nationale d’Art Décoratif in In 1950, he moved to New York, installing a high-
Aubusson. After returning to the United States, he warp loom in his apartment. There, he created
had most of his tapestries woven at Paul Avignon’s large tapestries, woven primarily by his wife and his
workshop for over 20 years. second companion, and created in only one edition.
He also worked a great deal in mural painting He reduced his colour range to a limited number of
and stained glass during the same period. Flight colours, enhanced by the use of black. His work was
of Angels was presented at the second Biennial marked by sharp and precise shapes. He considered
of Lausanne. The artist was a major figure in the tapestry to be a full-fledged medium that cannot
tapestry renaissance in California in the 1970s. simply be the re-transcription of a painting. His work
Later in his career, watercolour became his medium exhibited at the Biennials in 1962 and 1965 won
of choice in more intimate works. him international recognition.
15
THE CATALOGUE

From Tapestry to Fiber Art. The Lausanne Biennials

1962-1995 by Giselle Eberhard Cotton and Magali
Junet of the Fondation Toms Pauli was published in
late 2017, and covers all of the Biennials of Lausanne.
It will be available for sale at the exhibition.

FROM TAPESTRY TO FIBER ART

The Lausanne Biennials 1962-1995

Authors: Giselle Eberhard Cotton and Magali Junet

with contributions from O. Contamin, J. Jefferies,
K. Kawashima, M. Kowalewska and J. Porter.

This illustrated book with over 200 reproductions

of works and views of halls, most of which are
published here for the first time, traces the history
of the Biennials of Lausanne. It bears witness to
the importance and vitality of these exhibitions—16
editions, 911 works, over 600 artists from around
the world—and their impact abroad.
The art of tapestry experienced a boom following the
end of the Second World War. Throughout Europe,
workshops and national factories were seeing a
current of renewal. Through its Tapestry Biennial,
the city of Lausanne became the international
showcase of contemporary textile art in 1962.
A meeting place, and source of inspiration and
confrontation: this event was the preferred platform
for major developments in the medium, which took
wall tapestry to textile sculpture and Fiber Art.

25 x 25 cm
224 pages
200 illustrations
€55.00
Publisher Skira / Fondation Toms Pauli

French edition ISBN 978-88-572-3472-4

English edition ISBN 978-88-572-3471-7

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VISUALS FOR THE PRESS 1/2

Magdalena Abakanowicz, Poland (1930-2017)

Abakan red, 1969
High warp, sisal, 400 x 400 x 350 cm Artist’s
workshop
Fourth Biennial of Lausanne, 1969
Tate collection : presented anonymously 2009
Foundation Magdalena Marta Abakanowicz Kos-
mowska and Jan Kosmowski
Photo: Stamm & Saxod, Lausanne

Henri-Georges Adam, France (1904-1967)

Dalles, sable et eau, 1965
High warp, wool, 400 x 594 cm
Manufacture nationale des Gobelins, Paris
Second Biennial of Lausanne, 1965
Mobilier National, Paris, inv. GOB1121
Photo: Mobilier national

Mark Adams, United States (1925-2006)

Flight of Angels, 1962 Low warp, wool and cotton,
300 x 365 cm
Atelier Paul and Margarita Avignon, Aubusson,
Second Biennial of Lausanne, 1965
Denver Art Museum Collection, Neusteter Textile
Collection, Gift of the E. Mark Adams and Beth Van
Hoesen Adams Trust, inv. 2013.74
Photo: CITAM archives

Pierre Chevalley, Switzerland (1926-2006)

Tapisserie n°4 (Thème I II III), 1967 Stit-
ching-gluing, wool, 296 x 304 cm
Atelier Alain Dubuis, Paris
Third Biennial of Lausanne, 1967
Fondation Toms Pauli, Lausanne, inv. FTP205
Photo: Fondation Toms Pauli

Elsi Giauque, Switzerland (1900-1989)

Virtual Spatial Element, 1969-1972
Dematerialised high warp, variable dimensions, 400 x 400 x 400 cm
Execution: Elsi Giauque and Käthi Wenger,
Fourth Biennial of Lausanne, 1969
Musée de design et d’arts appliqués contemporains - MUDAC, Lausanne
Photo: Arnaud Conne

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VISUALS FOR THE PRESS 2/2

Maureen Hodge, Great Britain (1941)

Winterwood, 1965
High warp, wool, linen, jute, 175 x 460 cm Artist’s
workshop
Second Biennial of Lausanne, 1965 Artist’s collection
Photo: Maureen Hodge

Arthur Jobin, Switzerland (1927-2000)

Cathédrale psychédélique, 1969
Low warp, wool, acrylic paint, leather, 600 x 320 x 320 cm
Execution: Claire Jobin
Fourth Biennial of Lausanne, 1969
Fondation Toms Pauli, Lausanne, inv. FTP206
Photo: Arthur Jobin

Jean Lurçat, France (1892-1966)

Jubilation, 1964
Low warp, wool, 315 x 362 cm, Atelier Raymond Picaud,
Aubusson Second Biennial of Lausanne, 1965
Cité internationale de la tapisserie, Aubusson, inv. D.2013-1
Photo: Eric Roger

Pablo Picasso, Spain (1881-1973)

Two Clowns, 1960
High warp, wool, 193 x 143 cm
Second Biennial of Lausanne, 1965, Ateliers Pinton Frères, Felletin
Cité internationale de la tapisserie, Aubusson, inv. 2017.11.1
Photo: Nicolas Roger

Mariette Rousseau-Vermette, Canada (1926-2006)

Hiver canadien, 1961
High warp, wool, 213 x 540 cm, Artist’s workshop
First Biennial of Lausanne, 1962
Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec, inv. 1963.70.
© Estate of Mariette Rousseau-Vermette and Claude Vermette.
Photo: MNBAQ, Jean-Guy Kérouac

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AROUND THE EXHIBITION

SEMINARS AND WORKSHOPS GUIDED TOURS

“L’œuvre tissée” (The woven work) summer school Free guided tours of the temporary exhibition daily
As part of a summer school for doctoral schools of at 4:30 in July and August.
Michel de Montaigne University of Bordeaux, Cité Guided tours on request outside of July or August at
internationale de la tapisserie is opening a series of a cost of €35 per group.
conferences to the public on woven interpretation in Free guided tours of the permanent collection of
works, including thematic visits for immersion in the the Cité internationale de la tapisserie in July and
region’s weaving industry. August daily at 11:00 and 3:00 (admission to Cité
>> 27 and 28 August 2019, registration on +41 05 internationale de la tapisserie includes admission
55 66 66 66 (space is limited). to the temporary exhibition of the Centre culturel et
artistique Jean-Lurçat).
“Homo Faber: l’interprétation tissée” (Homo
Faber summer school: woven interpretation) in
partnership with the Michelangelo Foundation DISCOVERY WORKSHOPS
Following the “Homo Faber” exhibition presented
by the Michelangelo Foundation in Venice in
Family workshops are offered in July and August.
September 2018, a summer school on creativity and
Information, schedules and prices available at www.
interpretation in tapestry will be held in Aubusson
cite-tapisserie.fr
in August 2019 with the aim of promoting crafts
and European design with the theme “Crafting a
more human future”. The Michelangelo Foundation
will invite eight to ten young creators or artistic
artisans interested in textiles to talk with weaving
apprentices from European manufactories (Dovecot,
Portalegre, Madrid, etc.) and graduates of the Brevet
des Métiers d’art “Art de la lisse” programme in
Aubusson, around the question of interpretation
and “four-handed” creation in tapestry. Scottish,
Portuguese, Polish, Bulgarian and French youth
will share their experiences and participate in a
workshop exchanging practices.
>> 26 August to 2 September 2019.

CONFERENCES

“La Nouvelle Tapisserie: le début de l’histoire”

(New Tapestry: The beginning of the story) Giselle
Eberhard Cotton, Director, Fondation Toms Pauli.
>> Saturday 27 August 2019. Free admission,
seating is limited.

“L’impact des Biennales de Lausanne sur la

tapisserie française” (The impact of the Lausanne
Biennials on French tapestry)
Bruno Ythier, curator, Cité internationale de la
tapisserie.
>> Date to be set.

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USEFUL INFORMATION
BUSINESS HOURS

September to June:
9:30-12:00 and 2:00-6:00. Closed Tuesdays.
July and August
10:00-6:00. Daily except Tuesdays: 2:00-6:00.
Annual closure: January.

TICKETS
Adult €8.00
Reduced €5.50
Students, under 25 years, over 65, Groups of at least 10
people, Cézam card holders
Free:
Children under 18, ICOM card, press card, Éducation na-
tionale card, Ministry of Culture employees, sector pro-
fessionals, members of the Société des Amis de the Cité
internationale de la tapisserie, Limoges City Pass holders.

VISITES GUIDÉES
Free guided tours of the temporary exhibition daily at
4:30 (July and August).

Free guided tours of the permanent collection of the

Cité internationale de la tapisserie daily at 11:00 and
3:00 (July and August).

By reservation at other times and outside of July and Au-

gust: €35 for groups of 1 to 40 people; €35 per additional
group of 1 to 40 people
Duration: 1:00 - 1:30.

Tour of the professional workshops of the Cité interna-

tionale de la tapisserie (accompanied): information avai-
lable at the ticket office.

Cité internationale de la tapisserie

Mailing adress
Rue des Arts - BP 89
23200 AUBUSSON

Visitor parking
Rue Williams-Dumazet
23200 AUBUSSON
AUBUSSON
Cité internationale
Centre culturel et artistique Jean-Lurçat de la tapisserie

Avenue des Lissiers

23200 AUBUSSON

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WORTH SEEING IN AUBUSSON IN 2019

Photo: Thierry Monvoisin Photo: Nicolas Roger.

A COLOURFUL JOURNEY In 2019, the Cité Internationale de la tapisserie is

The 2019 exhibition in the Nef des Tentures presents celebrating the living craftsmanship of Aubusson
over 20 new works reconstructing six centuries of tapestry, marking ten years since their inscription
tapestry history in Aubusson. Discover fantastic uni- as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage of
corns and dragons, mythological creatures and gent- humanity.
lemen in an immersive environment. Then, colour You can’t miss Cité internationale de la tapisserie in
reigns in works by major artists of the 20th century the city of Aubusson. Its façade proudly bears the
with Jacques Lagrange, Robert Wogensky, Georges colours of this living heritage and invites you to ex-
Braque, Victor Vasarely, Pablo Picasso, Sonia Delau- plore the world of Aubusson crafts to discover the
nay, etc. weavers with magic fingers.
Don’t miss “Tapisseries du monde” (Tapestries from A tapestry is a “four-handed” work: those of the art-
around the world) from the collections of the Musée ist who creates the template and those of the weav-
du Quai Branly and discover the fine craftsmanship er who interprets it. This notion of interpretation
and history of its practice in “Mains d‘Aubusson”. and the presence of a complete production industry
The contemporary tapestries bear witness to the were two decisive elements for Aubusson tapestry
energy and virtuosity of human know-how. They will to be inscribed as a UNESCO intangible cultural her-
surprise you. itage. These concepts guide the celebrations in this
anniversary year, with a special program for Euro-
AUBUSSON WEAVES TOLKIEN pean Heritage Days on 21 and 22 September 2019,
exactly ten years after our UNESCO inscription. This
Explore “Middle-earth” in Aubusson! The Cité inter- summer, the Cité internationale de la tapisserie will
nationale de la tapisserie is creating 13 wall tapes- be opening a new cinema space dedicated to the
tries and one floor rug based on the original illustra- tapestry industry in the Aubusson region, and to the
tions of the famous author of The Lord of the Rings, work done by the Cité internationale de la tapisserie
J.R.R. Tolkien. The Cité internationale de la tapisse- in this sector.
rie opens the doors to this monumental woven pro-
ject and the tapestries of the Tenture Tolkien as they
are completed, as well as the pieces underway in CLÉMENT COGITORE
the weavers’ workshop on the second floor of the The tapestry event for the winner of the Marcel
Cité. Duchamp 2018 award
30 June - 24 August 2019 / Scène nationale d’Au-
busson, Centre culturel et artistique Jean-Lurçat
After visiting the summer exhibition, be one of the
first to discover the woven work by Clément Cogi-
tore, visual artist and creator, and winner of the Mar-
cel-Duchamp 2018 award. The imposing tapestry is
on display at the Théâtre d’Aubusson.

LA MAISON PINTON
150 years of tapestry
15 May - 27 October 2019 / Église du Château de
J.R.R. Tolkien, Glórund sets forth to seek Túrin (detail), Atelier Patrick
Guillot, 2018. Cité internationale de la tapisserie collection, Aubusson.
Felletin
Photo: Cité de la tapisserie. The Cité internationale de la tapisserie is curating an
exhibition dedicated to the productions of the Ateliers
2009-2019, CELEBRATING TEN YEARS OF UNES- Pinton, over 150 years after its creation, in partnership
CO INSCRIPTION OF AUBUSSON TAPESTRY with Felletin Patrimoine Environnement.
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CONTACTS

CITÉ INTERNATIONALE DE LA TAPISSERIE PRESS RELATIONS

Rue des Arts - BP 89 anne samson communications
23200 AUBUSSON - FRANCE Camille Julien | + 33(0)1 40 36 84 35
Séverine David [email protected]
[email protected] Morgane Barraud|+ 33 (0)1 40 36 84 34
+33 (0)9 72 48 15 65 [email protected]
www.cite-tapisserie.fr
Creuse tourist reservation agency
@CiteAubusson Béatrice Faury
@CiteTapisserie [email protected]
+ 33 (0) 5 55 51 93 28
@citetapisserieaubusson

FONDATION TOMS PAULI

2, rue Caroline
1003 LAUSANNE - SWITZERLAND
Giselle Eberhard Cotton
Magali Junet
[email protected]
+41 (0) 21 329 06 86
www.toms-pauli.ch

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Photo : Cité internationale de la tapisserie.
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