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Migration of a Tradition: Tapestry Images

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Norwegian Folk Art: The Migration of a Tradition (Abbeville Press, 1995) features beautiful photos of Norwegian billedvev, or tapestry. The section is available in pdf format here: “Reflections of the Renaissance: The Tapestry Technique and Picture Weaving.”

Several historical tapestries were included in the book and the exhibit it celebrated. Also, two modern pieces reflected Norwegian billedvev tradition: a tapestry by Nancy Jackson and a quilt by Helen Kelly. 

Nancy Jackson, “The Battle of the Horse and Bull”

When Marion Nelson asked Nancy Jackson if her tapestry, “The Battle of the Horse and Bull,” could be included in the traveling exhibition, she felt very honored. He told her he thought her tapestry was an important link between the old Norwegian picture tapestries and the newer Norwegian tapestry images. It was also meaningful because Marion’s wife Lila was important to Nancy’s development as an artist. Nancy wrote, “I always respected Marion and Lila so much, and consider Lila to be the first person who opened my eyes to tapestry as a serious weaving expression. She understood me and directed me through the many letters we wrote back and forth after she taught my first tapestry weaving class in the late 1970s.”

Nancy Jackson, “Battle of the Horse & Bull.” 41-inches x 58-inches. Materials: Wool on cotton warp. Photo: Charlie Langton of Vesterheim Museum.

Nancy Jackson, “Saint Olav (Olaf) King of Norway.” 59.5″ x 27″, handwoven tapestry, wool weft & cotton warp. All rights reserved.

While Nancy never saw the show in person, it led to a marvelous new tapestry. Nancy’s Norwegian friends saw the show in Oslo, completely by chance, and were excited when they found “The Battle of the Horse and the Bull” by their friend back in the U.S. Later Nancy wove a commissioned tapestry for the couple, a five-foot-high “King Olav,” inspired by Norwegian billedvev tradition. 

Nancy Jackson continued to have a distinguished career as a tapestry artist and icon painter. In 2003-2004 Vesterheim Norwegian American Museum held an exhibit of Nancy’s work: Incarnations: A Nancy Jackson Retrospective 1980-2003. “The Battle of the Horse and Bull” was featured prominently, along with the working documents, including the life-sized cartoon and woven color samples.

See more of Nancy Jackson’s work at Timshel Tapestry and Iconography Studio. 

 

 

 

Helen Kelley, “Renaissance”

Photo: Jason Onerheim, Minnesota Historical Society

Helen Kelly (1927-2008), a noted quilter from Minneapolis, Minnesota, paid homage to an old Norwegian billedvev design in “Renaissance.” Helen and her quilt were featured in the Norwegian Textile Letter in August, 2019.  See: ““Under the Skin of Those Old Weavers”: Helen Kelley’s ‘Renaissance’ Quilt” By Lisa Anne Bauch. 

The quilt is now in the collection of the Minnesota Historical Society.

See also these articles: Norwegian Folk Art: The Migration of a Tradition (Introduction) and Migration of a Tradition: Norwegian Folk Dress in America

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amy Axen: The Baldishol Bandana

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By Robbie LaFleur  

Amy Axen, from Stony Creek, New York, was inspired by the images and designs in the Baldishol Tapestry to create her 21st-century “Baldishol Bandana,” both a decorative and functional piece. She studied the flora and fauna, and the geometric and organic shapes, in the original tapestry. She parsed the design elements and the story told in the images to create her own layered interpretation and homage. She began with careful study of the symbols in the Baldishol Tapestry.

She came up with came up with a complex, layered design and prepared both hand-carved wood blocks and hand-cut pochoir stencils for her textile printing.

Amy wrote in her application, “Each iconic image…will be inspired by those utilized in this treasured, historic, Norwegian antecedent.”

She mimicked the colors of the original tapestry with several botanical inks and dyes, including ochres harvested on a recent drive from San Diego, California, to the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York.

With color and symbols she added layers of meaning. 

The finished piece: 

 

Amy has a broad art education and work background. She majored in Fine Art for both her undergraduate and graduate degrees, worked in the art departments of two magazine publishing companies and an advertising agency, and finished her formal career with over two decades as an art educator in public and private schools. She is skilled in several media, and especially enjoys drawing, painting, print and book making, ceramics, jewelry, puppetry, and animation. And fiber! Amy remembers two special textile mentors. She remains grateful to her junior high school Home Economics teacher who taught her to pin, cut, sew and iron a garment made from a paper pattern. Later, she felt blessed to be introduced to both dyeing and and the beauty of tapestry weaving by her professor, Margaret Kilbuck Johansen (1921-2004). 

Amy Axen pulled together her Baldishol design into layers of meaning, a joyful re-assemblage of symbols from the Medieval tapestry, using skills from her rich and varied career.  And despite the current challenges and constraints of the pandemic, she wrote, “Now, in “retirement,” each day I awaken to continue to create and I love every moment of it, just as I always have.”

During the summer of 2020, follow along with stories of the artists and several virtual experiences during the Norway House exhibit, The Baldishol: A Medieval Tapestry Inspires Contemporary Textiles.

 

Jonna Gjevre: Baldishol Birds to Sheep

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By Robbie LaFleur

The artists in the upcoming exhibition, “The Baldishol: A Medieval Tapestry Inspires Contemporary Textiles,” have remarkably varied responses to the inspirational tapestry. They have taken elements of design, color, materials, and story into their own fiber art practices.

Jonna Gjevre pulled in diverse Scandinavian references when planning her Baldishol piece, “An Eye on the Past.” Four birds appear in the original tapestry: three facing forward, and one back. In Jonna’s cushion cover, she uses Norwegian stranded knitting technique to depict four sheep; again, three facing forward, and one turned away. The horned sheep designs are adapted from traditional Icelandic lopapeysa designs. The groups of colored dots around the sheep reference the background in the tapestry. She used natural dyes made from madder, indigo, chamisa, and cota (Navajo tea), echoing the historic dyes used in the tapestry.

Studying the Norwegian tapestry led Jonna to more Norwegian research. Tapestry designs in Gerhard Munthe: Norwegian Pioneer of Modernism sparked background ideas.  She was looking at a collection of mitten patterns from Selbu—selbuvotter—and found a design that echos the wave-like border of the Baldishol. 

Though she grew up in Minnesota, her current home in New Mexico has a strong influence on her work in fiber. The Baldishol and tapestries woven in Medieval Norway used lustrous yarn spun from indigenous spelsau sheep. The breed became nearly extinct, but was revived through conservation efforts. The yarn Jonna used in “Eye on the Past,” 100% Navajo-Churro wool from northern New Mexico, came from an old sheep variety, too. She wrote,  

Having grown up on a sheep farm in northern Minnesota, I’ve long had an interest in the societal significance of wool production and textile arts. In this piece, I’m using naturally dyed wool from Navajo-Churro sheep. Due to culturally imperialistic government interference between 1860 and 1930, this rare, desert-hardy breed was slaughtered in great numbers and nearly rendered extinct. Through the efforts of a few dedicated Diné (Navajo) shepherds and other conservationists, these sheep—deeply significant to Native American communities in the southwest—were saved. The Navajo-Churro Sheep Association was formed in 1986, its aim to protect this rare breed from becoming a memory. 

During her research, Jonna turned up a reference to the Baldishol in another medium, Norwegian postage stamps.

Jonna’s lifelong passion for fiber arts started on a sheep farm in Minnesota, and grew to include a passion for words. With a PhD from the University of Wisconsin, she has taught creative writing in Scotland and film studies in the United States. She wrote a textile-themed novel, Arcanos Unraveled. Perhaps Jonna could take up another homage to the Baldishol Tapestry? A Medieval knight on a dappled horse–there could be a novel there! 

Website: jonnagjevre.com 

Nordic Notes: Articles, Exhibits, and News

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Beginning with this issue, the Norwegian Textile Letter will include a regular column to alert readers to recommended online Scandinavian textile information. I often hear of interesting articles online, and this will be a venue to share. Several times each year I learn of Scandinavian textiles in gallery or museum exhibits. This “catch-all” Nordic News column will include websites, blogs, conferences, or projects. Let me know if you have items to share! 

Articles

The Journal of Dress History is the academic publication of The Association of Dress Historians. This very readable historical article from 2018 chronicles the development of bunads (regional national costumes), and their relationship to traditional peasant dress. See: Solveig Strand. “The Norwegian Bunad: Peasant Dress, Embroidered Costume, and National Symbol.” The Journal of Dress History, Volume 2, Issue 3, Autumn 2018, pp. 100-121. (The link is to the whole issue; scroll to page 100 for the article.)

 

Claudio Cocco traveled all the way from Arizona to study drawloom weaving with Anne Nygård at her Damaskvev studio in Bjorn, Norway. Read about Claudia’s travel and textile adventure in her extensive blog post, Damask Adventure – Weaving at the 66th Parallel. You can follow Claudia’s further weaving adventures on her blog, Vairarenbeth’s Blog, and on Instagram, where she posts under the name #teacatweaver.

Exhibits

Ann-Mari Forsberg (Sweden, 1916–1992) for Märta Måås-Fjetterström, Red Crocus hanging, 1945. Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

A trip to Milwaukee this summer is in order, to visit a major exhibit, Scandinavian Design and the U.S., 1890-1980 at the Milwaukee Art Museum, from May 15–September 7, 2020.  There are a substantial number of textiles included, 32 of the total of 180. From the overview: 

Scandinavian Design and the United States, 1890–1980, will be the first major international loan exhibition to examine the extensive design exchanges between the United States and the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) during the twentieth century. The exhibition will examine how both Nordic ideas about modern design and the objects themselves had an indelible impact on American culture and material life, as well as demonstrate America’s influence on Scandinavian design.

Read more.

Envelope from Sweden,” 1992″

MIA (the Minneapolis Institute of Arts)  recently opened Cloth Paper Scissors: Helena Hernmarck Weaves the Everyday, February 15-October 18, 2020. (Note: Hernmarck will deliver a lecture in connection with the exhibition, date TBD, in July or after.)

What sparks the artist’s imagination? Helena Hernmarck often finds inspiration in the stuff of everyday life: a letter, admission tickets, paper money, even dry cleaner tags. She contemplates these humble items, scales them up, and weaves them into large tapestries that display her virtuosic skills in photorealism. Showcased in this installation are four of Hernmarck’s “paper illusion” textiles in Mia’s permanent collection alongside works of art and archival materials from the artist’s private collection.

The Swedish American Museum in Chicago, Illinois, is holding an exhibit from March 7-June 7, 2020, Double-Weave in Sweden: New Materials and Applications. 

Double-weave is a special weaving technique that creates textiles with two layers…This exhibit is put together by nine weavers from Sweden. Their aim is to preserve this cultural heritage and teach people about its history and techniques. The weavers hope that by finding new uses, materials, and applications for double-weave, they will increase awareness around this weaving form and renew interest in the craft.

Designs from the Oleana company near Bergen, Norway, are featured in the Galleri at Norway House in Minneapolis, Minnesota, from February 14-May 10, 2020. 

News

In Minnesota, the Scandinavian Weavers Study Group is embarking on a group project. 18 members will weave pillow tops in rosepath, inspired by Anna Östlund’s book, Från Januari blues till December röd: 18 kuddar i rosengång (From January Blues to December Reds: 18 pillows in rosepath). Watch for updates about the project on the Scandinavian Weavers blog, at scandinavianweaversmn.com. 

 

 

 

 

National Exhibition of Folk Art in the Norwegian Tradition, 2019

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Each year the ribbon-winning weavings are published in The Norwegian Textile Letter, for those not lucky enough to visit the National Exhibition of Folk Art in the Norwegian Tradition at the Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum in Decorah, Iowa. 

Laura Demuth, Gold Medalist
Decorah, IA
Best in Show



This is a traditional Rutevev Wall Hanging. I simply love to sit in front of my loom with yarn in my hands creating a textile. Weaving rutevev is particularly pleasing, involving simple geometric patterns and an appealing rhythm. The weaving process offers a certain peace and structure to any day. I have been weaving and working with wool for over 40 years. I am especially drawn to traditional textiles. Although I am not Norwegian, I greatly appreciate Vesterheim’s textile collection as a continual source of inspiration. Laura Demuth

Wendy Stevens
Decorah, IA
People’s Choice


This is a 6-shaft danskbrogd weaving. I have been weaving since 1976. I have been fortunate to have taken numerous classes at Vesterheim including Jan Mostrom’s class in danskbrogd last fall. Renting an 8-harness loom at Vesterheim for the month of January allowed me to continue to experiment with this technique. Wendy Stevens

Lisa Torvik
St, Paul, MN
“Better than Lawn, My Garden”
White Ribbon


This contemporary wall hanging is done on a warp set up for traditional tavlebragd (monk’s belt) technique with traditional treading and untraditional use of inlay color.  This piece is inspired by a painting of our house done by my husband. When I sat down to work on this warp, I got the idea of weaving our yard, front to back. Starting at the bottom with the rain garden on our boulevard, through plantings of tulips, lilies, cone flowers, crabapple trees, various iris, coral bells—-well you get the idea. Then our tiny back lawn through the seasons and our back gardens with hosta just about everywhere. I am a native of Decorah, grew up running around the museum and was exposed there and elsewhere to traditional and contemporary textiles. I started weaving, knitting and sewing when I was young, took some classes here and studied weaving for a year in Norway. Now, finally, I have time to weave again. Lisa Torvik

Carol Culbertson
Evansville, WI
Honorable Mention


This traditional piece was woven to be a 32.5” x 16” table runner. This is an example of danskbrogd bound weave. The inspiration from this work came to me while taking a weaving class at Vesterheim in July 2018. One of the students had an example of Danskbrogd with her. I was instantly drawn to this technique. By the time I finished the class, it was time to make a table runner for the Christmas holidays. After experimenting with patterns from class and others I had seen at the museum, this piece emerged. My 4 year old great-granddaughter saw this weaving on the loom and excitedly announced “Christmas” so it is called “Grace’s Christmas” in her honor.  After weaving in the Navajo tradition for 10 years, I was introduced to weaving in the Norwegian tradition 4 years ago when given a wall hanging by a family member. Since then I have been driven to learn more about Norwegian traditional weaving techniques. Carol Culbertson

Carol Culbertson
Evansville, WI
Red ribbon


This piece was woven to be a 27” x 14.5” table runner. It is an example of krogbragd bound weave. My inspiration for this piece comes from weaving I have seen in the museum’s collection as well as weaving brought into classes by other weavers. It was an experiment on my part of using only three colors with single point krokbragd pattern elements. Several trials of a variety of patterns were tried before this sequence was determined. It was a challenging process turning the multicolored patterns into the three color runner I wanted. Carol Culbertson

Corwyn Knutson
Roseville, MN
Red ribbon


This contemporary handwoven, hand knotted rya is based on northern Norway Boat Rya Wall Hanging. I studied with Syvilla Bolson of Decorah and at College of Art and Design in Toronto. I’ve been weaving Norwegian textiles for 20 plus years. Corwyn Knutson

Helen Scherer
Shawnee, KS
White ribbon


This traditional woven wall hanging or åklæ, is in a single interlock square-weave tapestry technique known as rutevev. The overall design was created by arranging several major traditional motifs, including eight-petaled roses, knots, a lily, and crosses with a hint of overall diamond, plus rows of crosses (korsbord), lightning (lynild) and hag’s teeth (kjerringtenner). The motifs were described in Katherine Larson’s book, The Woven Coverlets of Norway, and other elements in written documentation by Lila Nelson. I took a Rutevev class as part of Vesterheim’s 2011 Textile Tour and having discovered how slow and frustrating it could be, wanted more practice and familiarity with the traditional elements. Weaving has been a hobby for over a decade, and weaving in the Norwegian tradition is a very pleasant way of remembering my mother, who was quite skilled in both weaving and knitting. Helen Scherer

Lisa-Anne Bauch
Bloomington, MN
Honorable mention


Nordic folk arts are simple, using basic materials found in the Northern environment. However, they are also complex including a thousand variations on traditional colors and materials, motifs and techniques. My goal in weaving “Colors of the North II” was to express both aspects. I chose three primary colors—red, blue, and yellow—found in folk arts throughout the North, including Scandinavia, Finland, and the lands of the Sami peoples. The colors are bold, cheerful, and almost childlike in their simplicity, but the small variations in the size of the stripes and placement of the colors hint at a potential complexity. Although woven in a contemporary style, this rug is my homage to the folk artists of old. I am a weaver whose work explores traditional Nordic weave structures in a contemporary color palette. I have studied traditional techniques at the Weavers Guild of Minnesota, where I am a member of the Scandinavian Weavers Study Group. Lisa-Anne Bauch

Vladimira Fillion-Wackenreuther: Dress Me Up

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“Dress Me Up.” 24.5” W (+ 3.5” long fringes) x 16″ H

1. What is your artistic background? My entire life I have been creating through needlepoint, sewing, embroidery, quilting and patchwork. My grandmother was a professional dress maker and I was exposed from the time I was a toddler to needles, fabrics and fashion. Later in life, in 2008, I became interested in the Fibre Arts. I learned to spin yarn and weave tapestry. From that time I have woven many tapestries and I became a member of the Canadian Tapestry Network, the American Tapestry Alliance and Arts Council of Surrey, BC, Canada.  I took courses at Capilano University in BC where I studied weaving, dyeing and design at the Textile Art department. I reside in British Colombia, Canada. My work has been displayed at many exhibitions throughout Canada, United States and Australia.

2. What is your creative process when you weave a tapestry? Designs for my tapestries emerge from the books that I’m reading, from the different subjects of the stories, and many times from studying the themes for exhibitions I would like to enter. Some of my tapestries grow from the color or the color combinations which appeal to my feeling to view the world through naïve fantasy.  I work with collages of different photos and with swatches of paper. The drawing is only the undeveloped idea and through the process of weaving, I eliminate, add and alter the tapestry as if it’s talking to me. I spin and dye most of the yarn for my project. 

3. Were you familiar with the Baldishol tapestry before this exhibit? Yes. When studying Tapestry weaving at Capilano University in British Colombia, which was one part of the Textile Art program, we were going through the history and the origin of famous tapestries around the world.

4. What draws you to the original Baldishol tapestry? What fires your imagination? I love Naïve Art and many of my tapestries that I create reflect this style. I found so many small details, beautiful color combination and I was researching for more information about it through the internet. I purchased the book from Norwegian Tapestries  by Aase Bay Sjovold for further information. 

Paper doll-like headgear accompanied by the wave-like border of the original tapestry

5. How did your piece reinterpret the original? I was curious about the design of the clothing at the time the original tapestry was designed; this was the base for my reinterpretation. I reinterpreted the original tunics and made them like paper clipping art.

6. How did your piece challenge your technical and artistic skills? I weave some of my tapestries from the back and some from the front. The Baldishol tapestry was made with great technical skill of the weavers so my choice for weaving the piece from the back was easy.

Vladimira wove from the back

I wove on a vertical loom from the side. Because I planned to weave with many details, I warped my loom the first time with a sett of 12 EPI. I decided to use Norwegian Spelsau yarn,which I mostly hand dyed with Cushings dyes. After weaving couple of inches I had to change the sett to 10 EPI and rewarp the loom again. 

The image is woven on its side.

As the progress of the weaving was going I had to make some adjustments in my primary design–sometimes for technical reasons, sometimes for new ideas when the tapestry spoke to me differently. I use pick and pick often, so that wasn’t a problem, but a special “jagged” technique for the jagged looking effect I used only once on one of my tapestries and this was really challenging for me. It is also a challenge to work with a cartoon, which I designed on graph paper. I love all these new challenges!

the tapestry cartoon

7. What do you wish we knew about the original tapestry and its makers? I would like to know exactly the time when the original tapestry was woven (this was very important part of my study about the clothing). What was the warp sett on the loom and which type of wool was to use for the warp? How many weavers were working on the tapestry and for how long? Who did the design for this one and for other tapestries? What is the appearance of the colors of the weft today because the yarn was dyed many years ago with natural dyes? It is a real pity that we have only a fragment of the original longer weaving.

See more of Vladimira Fillion-Wackenreuther’s work at: vladimiratapestry.com, and see “Dress Me Up” in Minneapolis in the summer of 2020. 

The Baldishol: A Medieval Norwegian Tapestry Inspires Contemporary Textiles

 June 26-August 30, 2020 Norway House, Minneapolis, Minnesota Opening Party: Friday, June 26, 2020, 5-8 pm 

Inspired by the Baldishol Tapestry

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The previous issue of The Norwegian Textile Letter included articles on the Baldishol Tapestry and a Call for Art for the exhibit of Baldishol-inspired textile works to be held at Norway House in Minneapolis, Minnesota, beginning in June, 2020. 

The Baldishol: A Medieval Norwegian Tapestry Inspires Contemporary Textiles

 June 26-August 30, 2020
Norway House, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Opening Party: Friday, June 26, 2020, 5-8 pm 

There is Still Room for Your Creativity

The response to the Call for Art has been outstanding; nearly 20 entries have been accepted–from the U.S., Canada, and England so far–all with thoughtful interpretation based on the theme, design elements, colors, or technique of the original.  

Consider creating a piece for this show; space is available for up to 35 Baldishol-inspired works. Registration is open until December, or until the space if filled. 

A Few Examples of Work Underway

Garment-maker and Quilter Laurie Bushbaum is creating an appliquéd and quilted coat inspired by the April man, a seed bearer. Look for transformed vines and flowers from the Baldishol Tapestry, medieval text, and even pockets to bear future seeds. Deborah Lawson was also inspired by the tunic of the April man, and will be re-creating his bell-sleeved tunic in hand-woven silk, with tablet-woven edges in a design that echos the border of the Baldishol Tapestry. She wrote, “I am attempting to replicate the feel of the original tunic while using modern sensibilities to expand on it.”   

Deborah Lawson has started dyeing silk for her Baldishol exhibit piece

Do you see the spots on the Baldishol horse?  They will appear again on wide stripes in shades of indigo in a wool rug by Jan Mostrom, and on a thick pile rya by Katherine Buenger. 

Melanie Groves was intrigued by the calendar aspect, and will create a 3-dimensional felted panel for another month: Sólmánuður (sun month), the third month of summer in the old Norse calendar. It will include a Viking longboat, a solar image, and a tessellation of fish. Lisa Bauch will represent the months of April and May from the Baldishol Tapestry with two long, narrow rugs (16” x 9’). Their abstract designs will be based on the color relationships in the original tapestry. 

Medieval techniques and materials are integral to many pieces. Kelsey Skodje’s embroidery on linen will include floss spun with a medieval-style drop spindle.

A wide range of textile techniques are represented, including fabric block-printed designs using botanical inks and dyes  by Amy Axen, and mixed media textile collage by Amy Ropple. 

Appropriate to an exhibit honoring the Baldishol Tapestry, several tapestries will be featured. Vladimira Fillion-Wackenreuther is using traditional Norwegian billedvev (tapestry) technique, design, yarn, and colors for her tapestry. See this clever concept sketch of the men and their costumes in “Dress Me Up.  

Lindsey Marshall designed a tapestry banner after learning that the Baldishol fragment may have been part of a long frieze. In her concept sketch, the wings at the end reference the Baldishol birds.

The Baldishol Tapestry is a physical embodiment of a past time. Sally Reckert will weave with Scandinavian rare breed wool warp and weft using Norwegian tapestry techniques in an image that brings the Baldishol to today. The horse, birds, and standing person from the Baldishol are joined by children marching behind the horse for action on climate change. Mark your calendar–you’ll want to see her sketch turned into a timeless tapestry. 

More information: Call for Art 

For inspiration, see these articles in the Norwegian Textile Letter:  “Baldisholteppe: A Treasure from the Middle Ages;” “The Baldishol Tapestry in the White House,” which originally appeared in the Kulturhistorisk Leksikon (Cultural History Encyclopedia), published by Fylkesarkivet i Sogn og Fjordane (the County Archives of Sogn and Fjordane); and “The Baldishol Tapestry–The White House Replica and Others.”

Call for Art:The Baldishol Exhibit

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The Baldishol: A Medieval Norwegian Tapestry Inspires Contemporary Textiles

 The exhibit: June 26-August 30, 2020
Norway House, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Opening Party: Friday, June 26, 2020, 5-8 pm

Most people aware of weaving traditions in Norway (or Europe) have seen an image of the famous Baldishol Tapestry.  This tapestry textile fragment, depicting the months of April and May, was discovered in Norway in 1879 when a church was torn down. It is now recognized as one of the earliest European tapestries.

 

This Norwegian historical treasure has been replicated many times.  The Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum in Decorah, Iowa, alone has three full-sized copies. A group of Norwegian-American women presented one to Mrs. Calvin Coolidge in 1926, in honor of the Norse-American Centennial celebrated the year before. Many students in Scandinavian weaving schools in past decades wove copies of the head of “April man.”

The head of “April Man,” unknown weaver. Tapestry owned by Carol Johnson, Minneapolis

Now it is your turn, as a contemporary artist, to be inspired by the Baldishol Tapestry.

We are looking for original weavings and other art works in fiber that look to the Baldishol Tapestry for inspiration, not replication, for a textile art exhibit at Norway House in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the summer of 2020.  Sponsors include Norway House, the Weavers Guild of Minnesota, the Textile Center of Minnesota, and the Norwegian Textile Letter.  The purpose of the exhibit is to highlight the talent and creativity of textile artists, internationally, while educating Norway House audiences about the famous Norwegian tapestry.

Examine the rich images of the April and May panels. Elements of the images could be woven, perhaps in multiples—birds? The dots of the horses? The designs of the bands? Could you weave cloth and make the tunic of one of the figures? Or make the shoes, or the helmet? Could you imagine the characters in a different time period, sowing seeds or going to war? If the Baldishol tapestry was only two months of a longer frieze, what would have happened on other panels? How are you inspired?

Prizes! Works in The Baldishol: A Medieval Norwegian Tapestry Inspires Contemporary Textiles will be judged before the opening by Karen Searle, noted Minnesota artist, and Laurann Gilbertson, Curator of the Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum.

First Prize: $250
Second Prize: $100
People’s Choice (To be given following the exhibit): $50

Details and dates

This show will be curated by a group from Norway House and the Weavers Guild of Minnesota.  To be included, you must submit an application. Art works, which must be original and executed by the artist, will be accepted into the show based on relevance to the theme as well as overall concept, design, and technique.

Applications will be taken from March 1-December 15, 2019, or until the exhibit space is filled. The piece does not need to be completed for approval of the concept. Applications will be processed within 6 weeks of receipt.  Approved pieces should be delivered to Norway House between June 8-June 20, 2020. 

The application form is here. 

Cost:  The application fee is $25, to help defray administrative costs (to be paid upon acceptance).

Sales: Items may be for sale, but transactions are the responsibility of the artist, not Norway House (due to is tax status). Details will be available in the acceptance letter. 

An Exhibit Catalog will be published and available for purchase.  

For inspiration, see these articles in the Norwegian Textile Letter:  “Baldisholteppe: A Treasure from the Middle Ages;” “The Baldishol Tapestry in the White House,” which originally appeared in the Kulturhistorisk Leksikon (Cultural History Encyclopedia), published by Fylkesarkivet i Sogn og Fjordane (the County Archives of Sogn and Fjordane); and “The Baldishol Tapestry–The White House Replica and Others.”

Questions? contact Robbie LaFleur at lafleur1801@me.com. The curatorial committee:  Max Stevenson and Rachael Barnes from Norway House; and Claire Most, Sara Okern, Lisa Ann Bauch, Lisa Torvik, and Robbie LaFleur from the Weavers Guild of Minnesota. 

Playing at the Loom Together: The Scandinavian Weavers Study Group Tackles Skillbragd

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By Lisa Torvik

Karin Maahs made a pillow from her piece, and it won a blue ribbon at the Minnesota State Fair.

After enjoying our project in 2017 which focused on the Swedish art weave, “dukagång”, there was consensus to embark on a new group project in 2018 studying an overshot technique known as “skillbragd” [pron. “shill’ brahgd”] in Norway and as “Smålandsväv” [pron. “smoh’ lahnds vave”] in Sweden.  Regional variations in Norway go by other names, too.  Essentially, all forms secure long pattern weft floats with a single or double shot of tabby.

There are a few different ways to set up a loom for this technique, but most assume a loom with sufficient depth front to back to accommodate several harnesses separated in two groups, and the ability to adjust harnesses up and down independently of each other.  Historically, this technique would have been set up with counterbalance.  After review of a lot of different sources, and some experimentation, we found that setting up the ground on countermarch and the pattern harnesses using elastic bands worked the best.  Even so, most found it necessary to use a pick up stick to create a good pattern shed, though the plain weave sheds were pretty good.  Most of us used stick shuttles for the pattern yarn and some for the ground weft also.  Keeping the warp damp aided in getting a better shed and strengthening the warp under high tension.

The ground is threaded on two or four shafts, and the pattern is usually on 4 or 6 shafts, but a larger number of pattern harnesses is possible if the loom can accommodate them.  The warp is first threaded in regular heddles on the ground harnesses for plain weave.  Then contiguous groups of warp threads, often four at a time, are threaded through pattern harnesses in front, using long-eyed heddles or by threading the group of warp threads under the eye of regular heddles.  A single square in the drafts we used corresponds to one group of four threads in a pattern heddle.

The two groups of harnesses should be separated by a few inches.  The sinking-shed pattern is created by treadling the pattern harnesses, one or more at a time, and following each pattern shot with a plain weave shot.  A side fringe of loops can be created by catching the pattern weft around a finger.  The ground weft is usually threaded so 2 or 4 warp threads create a selvedge that is not threaded through a pattern heddle.  This selvedge locks in the loops or hides the pattern weft turns on the backside of the weaving if no loops are desired.

Loops at the edges. The two outer pieces are showing the “right” side, with the narrow selvedges.

We set up two warps in succession, both with Bockens 16/2 unbleached linen yarn.  Weft was the choice of the weaver.  The second was narrower than the first, but on the second warp, a smaller number of weavers wanted to weave longer pieces.  In all, fourteen weavers completed nearly 30 pieces of varying lengths between the two projects.  Most used wool weft, but some pieces were finished with all linen weft or perle cotton. (Draft for the first warp in pdf; 

Lisa Torvik wove a a spring flower garden runner with bundles of linen threads

After the group settled on skillbragd as the technique, we had to come up with ideas for patterns and drafts to set up the loom.  We had a number of printed materials to review, and among them was a photo and, conveniently enough, complete draft for a large traditional skillbragd tapestry from Gol in Buskerud, Norway that I found on the Husflid.no website.  After discussion, I chose a few elements from the piece and created a draft for the narrower width we wanted.  We decided that having the main pattern side up would make it easier to weave, though some traditional sources indicate that skillbragd was often woven backside up.(Draft for the first warp in pdf)

Pattern experiments abounded–Sara Okern stretched out one pattern element in the center of her runner.

When the second warp was proposed and a number of weavers wanted to join the project, Lisa Anne Bauch and I looked through several books and patterns and chose sections we liked to create a slightly narrower warp that featured more ground showing in the design.  Several weavers on the first warp had commented that would be desirable.  Interestingly enough, some of us found the more prominent weft pattern on the backside just as nice, so many pieces will be finished to be reversible. (draft for the second warp in pdf)

Sometimes it was difficult to decide whether the front or the back was more attractive.

I would like to acknowledge the weavers and, of them, the many that helped set up the two projects:  Phyllis Waggoner, Robbie LaFleur and Lisa Anne Bauch worked with me to set up – and set up again when THAT didn’t work – the first warp. 

Robbie LaFleur turning the crank, Lisa Torvik supervising and rolling on the warp, and Lisa Anne Bauch braced with the taut warp.

Robbie helped me monitor and aid those unfamiliar with the technique.  Melba Granlund, Lisa Anne and I set up the second warp, though we agreed four is best!   Help came from afar, too, with an “emergency” phone call while warping to Robbie’s colleague Shawn Cassiman in Michigan and a detailed letter from Ruth Ida Tvenge of the Øystre Slidre Husflidslag in Norway. Ruth Ida’s advice included, 

“I have set up several warps for Kristnateppe [1], both here at home, and for weaving classes.  And they have been good to weave on.  Use Solberg yarn no. 24/2 for warp yarn [2].  And I have a Glimåkra loom also.  They are good looms!  I weave tapestries that are 1.20 meters [47.25 inches] wide and approx. 1.45 meters [57 inches] long.  Use four harnesses for the plain weave and those I hang up with countermarch.  I hang up the four pattern harnesses in elastic bands (of car tire innertubes).  You must be sure to hang the pattern harnesses a little higher than the ground harnesses. When you beam on the warp be sure to hold tightly and firmly on it so that it is “hard” to turn for whoever is turning the warp beam.  Really tighten up the warp when you start to weave. Use narrow (thin) and long shuttles for the pattern sheds.”

[1] Kristnateppe is a traditional Valdres tapestry, a “christening tapestry”, woven in skillbragd technique on a linen or cotton warp with wool weft, featuring natural black, green, red, gold and sometimes blue bands.  

[2] Solbergspinderi of Norway manufactures exclusively 100% cotton yarns, 24/2 being one of their warp yarns.

Following this project, we displayed many of the pieces at the Weavers Guild of Minnesota. Some had been finished, others were in “right off the loom” state. See the article, “Celebrating TWO Group Skillbragd Warps,” on our Scandinavian Weavers Study Group blog. You can sign up to follow our future activities, too. Based on the success of this project, and the fun of seeing so much creativity within our group, we are planning a new warp, in monk’s belt, early in 2019. 

At a monthly meeting of the Scandinavian Weavers Study Group we had a ceremonial unrolling of the skillbragd pieces, toasted with sparkling juice.

Lisa Torvik credits early influences of her mother, grandmothers, aunts and friends in Norway for her knitting, sewing, embroidery and weaving interests.  She spent a year in her youth studying weaving at Valdres Husflidsskule in Fagernes, Norway and now focuses on projects in traditional Norwegian techniques and more contemporary applications.

From the Heart, Made by Hand: An Exhibit of Swedish Textiles

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News from Trevor Brandt, Curator, American Swedish Historical Museum

An important exhibit of Swedish textiles, From the Heart, Made by Hand: Treasures from the Women of Sweden, is currently on view at the American Swedish Historical Museum (ASHM) in Philadelphia. Founded in 1926, it is the oldest Swedish museum in the United States. The exhibit includes selections of handmade textiles presented to the museum in 1938 from every province of Sweden. The gift speaks of more than Swedish regionalism, though–for the person who organized the gift, these artifacts represented female power.

Dr. Hanna Rydh (1891-1964) was a member of the Swedish parliament, international women’s rights activist, Sweden’s first female archaeologist, and a great friend of the American Swedish Historical Museum. She organized one of the museum’s most extensive collections—a gift of 75 textiles and other hand-crafted materials made by women in every Swedish province. Through this gift, Dr. Rydh won a place of international honor for Nordic craftswomen.

In celebration of the collection’s 80th birthday, ASHM is presenting the material legacy of Dr. Hanna Rydh through the gift presented in 1938. Of course, the objects are marvels in their own right—all celebrating the identities of Swedish provinces. But even more than highlighting regional craft, these goods are activist objects emphasizing the role of craftswomen through history. To Rydh, handicraft—within the traditional women’s sphere—was a symbol of female accomplishment and signified their equality with men both in Sweden and America. 

What makes the perfect gift?

For many people, it is something that is handmade. This collection is one of the museum’s most cherished gifts. Monsters and animals weave their way around these objects and delight the eye. Both explosions of color and tame geometric patterns inspire curiosity. The variety within this collection means that each object reflects elements from the Swedish provinces to Americans and Swedish Americans.

Explore all that these textiles communicate by visiting From the Heart, Made by Hand: Treasures from the Women of Sweden on view between September 16th, 2018 and March 10th, 2019!

Until then, enjoy these images.