I strongly recommend a visit to Kristin Sæterdal's web exhibition The Tale of Three Tapestries at http://ntagallery.nordictextileart.net/. There are many photos and three videos in this exhibition and they are all fascinating.
She begins by talking about a project she worked on while she was an artist-in-residence at the Australian Tapestry Workshop. Force Field is a large tapestry commission for a primary school in Norway which takes the form of a capsule. Her explanation of the tapestry in the first video is wonderful.
The second section of the exhibition talks about Remembrance of the Sun, another large-scale tapestry with some exhibition photos that are stunning. Imagine a large tapestry of an underground space with light bouncing off cave-like walls hung in the middle of a large gallery space painted black. I know. Go look at the photos. The video about this piece has great details of her loom and shows her cutting it off.
The third section talks about The Red Capsule, a tapestry that addresses matters of technology and choices. Kristin Sæterdal says:
Her artist statement at the top of her website says this:
She begins by talking about a project she worked on while she was an artist-in-residence at the Australian Tapestry Workshop. Force Field is a large tapestry commission for a primary school in Norway which takes the form of a capsule. Her explanation of the tapestry in the first video is wonderful.
The second section of the exhibition talks about Remembrance of the Sun, another large-scale tapestry with some exhibition photos that are stunning. Imagine a large tapestry of an underground space with light bouncing off cave-like walls hung in the middle of a large gallery space painted black. I know. Go look at the photos. The video about this piece has great details of her loom and shows her cutting it off.
The third section talks about The Red Capsule, a tapestry that addresses matters of technology and choices. Kristin Sæterdal says:
The Red Capsule expresses a world without nature, everything is artificial. The panels displays many options, and it all comes down to pushing the right one.
The consequence of pushing the button is unknown.In her depiction of alien worlds, she opens up a lot of questions for us earthlings. Don't miss this online exhibition. And you can see her piece, Scared of the Dark in the American Tapestry Alliance's tenth biennial this year. Her website is HERE.
Her artist statement at the top of her website says this:
I make tapestries with motifs inspired by sci-fi scenography and computer games. I am searching to express archetypical human situations and states of mind. My works are commenting on different aspects of society today. For example: Is Technology our new religion? Can it save humanity from an environmental catastrophe?
Tapestry is anti-superficial and anti-collage. The work is consistent all the way through; the front is identical to the back. It is constructed thread after thread by hand. I find this disciplinary process fruitful for expressing essential insight.I find this work inspiring. Don't miss this web exhibition and make sure to watch the videos.