(R)E-view by Kathe Todd Hooker ...
>Date: Fri, 16 May 1997 18:37:04 -0700 (PDT)
>From: kathe todd-hooker
>Subject: A Book (R)E-view
>"Tapestries In Belgium" by Elsje Janssen
(Pierre Mardaga printer, Sprimont, Belgium, 1996(?), in French, German and
English. ISBN: 2-87009-555-4)
>(R)E-view by Kathe Todd Hooker
>Sometimes, I just cannot help myself. I really enjoy being a cultural
tourist. At times I work very hard with heavy tomes in hand -- a thorough
textile historian. But it's so hard and those types of books on tapestry
aren't easy to find in English. (Maybe that's a common plaint in every language:
"Asi es la vida de los esclavos!!") Other times I just want to
curl up into a soft comfortable chair and be entertained for an evening
and not feel guilty. Occasionally a book of tapestry does double duty. Janssen's
book is one of these.
>The book is not thick and is less reading than it appears to be at first
glimpse. Each page is written in three languages -- French, Flemish and
English. The book is 143 pages, or about 30 columns of English. That means
a little less than 15 pages of an average book. A distinctive advantage
of having the three languages side by side is that I was able to compare
weaving vocabularies and make interesting discoveries. (For those of us
that are mono-lingually challenged this could be important.) The book is
a nice one-evening romp through 400 years of Belgian tapestry weaving. The
pictures are quite wonderful. By "wonderful" I mean clear enough
to see the various techniques and treatment of various subject matter. I
probably spent more time looking at the tapestries and studying them then
I did the text.
>I found myself very enamored of the Twentieth century Belgian tapestries,
many of which were new to me. These tapestries range from the softly romantic
surreal quality of a Gaston Woedstad landscape, to the explosive brillance
of Jean Van Noten's "Resurrection", Christian Varese's metallic
"L'Homme au miroir", or Marika Szaras "Vision" (which
left me wondering how she did "that"). I could go on, but won't.
You can choose your favourites.
>The definitions and language used in the book are clear and concise.
I was amazed at the amount of information and detail Ms. Janssen was able
to include in her definitions of tapestry, weaving technique and the weaving
process. I was especially taken with her description of a technique that
I am particularly fond of: "Arras work" as the outlining of shapes
in darker values to add definition to a shape or figure. Many of the tapestries
produced in Tournai have been my favourites since graduate school. I love
their surreal and stylized landscapes and flowers, the elegant use of hachure.
>I was also very interested in the historic dispersal of Flemish weavers
and workshops. She describes the shift in geographic location, the economic
dispersion of the tapestries by trade, and the origins of the designs they
were weaving, all very succinctly in the text. There is a nice sampling
of coloured pictures of tapestries in a logical progression through the
different periods of Belgian weaving. I found few duplicates of historical
tapestries found in other books, which makes this a nice addition to anyone's
collection.
>Another section one might wish to "check out" is the section
on tapestry conservation. It's well-focused and again gives information
that that is both knowledgeable and useful for the professional, tourist,
buyer, or amateur. Short, but not lacking.
What the book succeeds at is giving a clear, abbreviated history of 400
years of Belgian tapestry tradition. Definitions make it possible for the
amateur to come away with a little knowledge without being overwhelmed.
There really are people in this world who only want to look at pictures
and learn only a little about tapestry weaving. As a teacher this is something
I sometimes forget. Ms. Jenssen's book is not a definitive history of Flemish
tapestry -- it wasn't meant to be -- but that does not detract. It just
changes the market or audience a bit. For a more in-depth study of Flemish
and Lowland weaving you may want to find the books: "Tapestries of
the Lowlands" by Heinrich Gobel (1974), or Roger D' Hulsts' "Flemish
Tapestry" from the 15th to the 18th Centuries (1967), or for technique
a small book by Gertraud Ingers, "Flemish Weaving-- A Guide to Tapestry
Technique" (1971).
>My biggest complaint about Janssen's book is that it is too short --
which, of course, would have defeated its intent of being a short, uncomplicated
romp through 400 years of Belgian tapestry. I did feel cheated and paranoid
about the English columns always being shorter. I kept wondering, "Did
I miss something wonderful?" Also, have you ever noticed how your eye
automatically focuses on the top left hand corner of a page and you try
to read it even if it's a language you don't understand? Almost makes me
want to learn French. Almost.
>Bye for now, kathe
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