There’s a world where people are fighting, killing, cheating and doing awful things to other human beings with the blessing of the powers that be.
And then there’s a world where people from all over the world spend months working on a 12 × 12 centimetres textile art project—something small, original and unique that may or may not get noticed and be awarded in a fairly obscure art competition.
Why are all the attention and money given to the first group of people mentioned above, who are often called “successful” or get infamously famous?
Seemingly meaningless activities are what make the world a beautiful place. We need people dedicated to sketching, etching, waving, sewing, writing, sculpting, drawing, painting, and more. Sure, technology and science can change the world—but so does art.
I felt better this week so I started “travelling” again. My first destination was Angers to explore the Musée Jean-Lurçat et de la tapisserie contemporaine.
Tapestry is a crazy form of textile art. It’s difficult and long to make—weaving is physically demanding, and the discontinuous structure makes tapestries impossible to reproduce with machines.
This museum in Angers houses a masterpiece, the Chant du monde, the series of ten monumental tapestries Jean Lurçat created between 1957 and 1965. The political manifesto is a symbolic and humanist vision of the 20th century, inspired by the 14th-century tapestry of the Apocalypse.
It took about ten years to make, and it was woven in three different workshops. It’s a life’s work designed to make us think and reflect about the world, mankind and the future. It’s not one of these technological inventions society will immediately benefit from, but it’s not futile either.
This year, the museum also featured the international mini-textile competition, with 72 tiny pieces of textile made by artists from all over the world around the theme “Weaving the Future.” Tapestry and textile art are still relevant today, and somehow, I found it very comforting.
Art matters, and artists too. So if you ever feel like creating something, big or small, just do it. It’s not meaningless, it will serve a purpose, even if you don’t know which purpose yet.
