The French Shore Tapestry

The French Shore Tapestry tells the story of northern Newfoundland's French Shore, from the pre-historic animals that roamed the forests and shoreline to the moment in 2006 when a few talented women in the tiny outport of Conche began their embroidery odyssey. This piece measures 66 meters long (216 feet) and is created from linen and wool. The Bayeux Tapestry, created in the 11th century, was the inspiration for making this piece. Images of the Bayeux Tapestry can be found here.

I had the honor of helping (October) to lace this piece to a wooden frame so that it could be put on display at the Geo Centre, St. John's, NL. You can see and read about the tapestry here.

Photo by Judy Cooper

If you are in the St. John's area over the Christmas holidays, it is well worth a visit. It is a very impressive piece!

Realistic Tapestries by Jill Draper

I just came across some fantastic realistic stitched tapestries by Jill Draper from the UK. These photos from the Telegraph say it all! Jill "renders pictures of rural life and shimmering seascapes in her embroidered tapestries recreating scenes with astonishing accuracy from photographs. Each picture measuring around 15 x 30 inches takes up to 120 hours and contains hundreds of thousands of stitches done by hand and machine." Read entire article here.

Raphael's Sistine Chapel Tapestries

While in England, I had the opportunity to visit the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. The focus for the visit was on four outstanding tapestries designed by Raphael for the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican and the Raphael Cartoons  from which they were woven. 'The Cartoons have been on display at the V & A since 1865 but the tapestries have never been shown before in the UK. This exhibition provides a unique opportunity to see these stunning designs and tapestries together - something Raphael himself never witnessed. The Acts of St. peter and St. Paul are the only surviving tapestries designed by Raphael and were commissioned almost 500 years ago by the Medici Pope Leo X for the Sistine Chapel. Both the Cartoons and the tapestries are renowned masterpieces of High Renaissance art'. The photo shown is from the V & A Web Site.

While catching up on my email (I had lots to read), I found that Mary Corbet's Needle 'N Thread - October 1 newsletter, made reference to these same tapestries. But the best thing, she had a link to an online video about them. Have a look! Photos of the tapestries were not permitted.