J288 The Journal for WSD

Four Voices Hopetoun House, South Queensferry, West Lothian 1 June – 31 July 2023

influence shows in What’s Happened to All Those Terns? with the sparkle of lurex thread in the waves. Where Are All the Gannets? hints at the catastrophic effect of avian flu on sea bird colonies. The exhibition was greatly enhanced by the weavers being present throughout the exhibition: John and Elizabeth

tapestries and The Rustling Beech Hedge which had a very pleasing rhythmic pattern. Joan Baxter’s tapestries depicted, for the most part, tranquil landscapes with careful shading of colours but with a hint of narrative – the wash of a boat, a splash of sunlight on a hillside. But a little of John Brennan’s

his work. By contrast Elizabeth Radcliffe’s compelling series based on the eyes of a range of big cats are finer with meticulous detail and sharp definition. She also showed a large pictorial tapestry A Strange Morning Light depicting a girl with a domestic cat, with mohair yarns emphasising the cat’s soft fur. Quite different were her series of knots, with narrow woven strips knotted and set over plain woven backgrounds in a range of colours. Clare Coyle showed a number of pieces inspired by ancient artifacts: Ghost Tree Rune, Findings at the Ness of Brodgar and Time Leaves its Mark: Arrowhead characterised by detail, subtle colour shading and representations of ancient pattern. Her other work on show was a series based on Japanese Boro – patchworks of fabric and stitching – which worked well as

The four voices of the title are those of tapestry weavers Joan Baxter, John Brennan, Clare Coyle and Elizabeth Radcliffe who all trained in the tapestry department of Edinburgh College of Art; their contemporary woven tapestry complementing the historic tapestries displayed in the setting of Hopetoun House, one of Scotland’s grandest houses. One of my first impressions was of the range of textures which the four weavers’ work represented. John Brennan’s tapestries display surface texture created both structurally and with different yarns, such as bouclé for fluffiness in his Clouds series and his self-confessed mission to add ‘bling’ to tapestry with beads, gold and lurex threads. He uses bundles of fine weft yarns including cotton, silk and rayon in various shades to give depth and richness to

A Garden series tapestry on the loom at the exhibition John Brennan

Photos: Hilary Miller

Nod to Boro Clare Coyle

Blue Eyed Eurasian Lynx / Tiger / Snow Leopard Elizabeth Radcliffe

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Journal for Weavers, Spinners and Dyers 288, Winter 2023