THE SWAN HUNT TAPESTRY
I've always been intrigued by tapestries - by their aesthetic beauty, the skill involved in making them, the time it took to produce them and their significance as social documents. I was delighted to find an unusual one on display at the Medici Villa - Poggio a Caiano when we visited in June. It was titled "The Swan Hunt" and I took great pleasure in examining it in detail. It's shown below.
Tapestries have been important art forms throughout Europe since the medieval period and were always hugely significant, not just as wall insulation but as elite, status objects - often worth more than the entire contents of an important property. When I first started seriously studying the history of the decorative arts I remember being drawn to them and was fascinated to discover that when an owner moved from one of his properties to another (this was often the case in medieval Europe) - the tapestries were taken down, rolled up and carefully moved to the next house to be displayed there. It amazes me that so many have survived through to the present day given their fragile nature and sensitivity to light, but the fact that they have been treasured over the ages is testament to their importance as unique art objects.
Tapestries were commissioned with a design or set of designs being produced by an artist for the patron and when this was approved it was then translated in to a full size cartoon which the weavers would work from to produce the tapestry. Weavers sat in front of a loom strung with vertical woolen threads (warp threads) and looked through these to the cartoon behind. Laboriously the weaver would then insert vegetable dyed coloured weft threads of wool and often silk to make the picture. The weaving process took place from the back so the final image was a reverse image of the one on the cartoon. It would take months and sometimes years to weave the picture which might be one of a set.
Tapestry making workshops were set up in areas important for commissions from wealthy patrons. In the 15th century there were significant centres in France at Arras and Tournai and also in Brussels which became dominant in the late 15th century. In Italy tapestry works were created in Mantua and Ferrara in the early 16th century, but it was not surprising that the Medici family would want to get in on the action and a tapestry making workshop was set up by Cosmio I de Medici in Florence in 1545. Output from it was not huge but the workshop concentrated on quality production and innovation in design. The tapestry I viewed at Poggio came from this workshop.
Subjects for tapestries in artistic terms ranged from the depiction of biblical stories, to narratives from classical mythology as might be expected but from the medieval period onwards contemporary subjects focusing on the countryside, forests and the practice of hunting were always popular. Hunting was the sport of kings and the elite and was thus suited to the production of these status objects. Anyone who has not seen the set of Devonshire Hunting Tapestries which are in the Victorian and Albert Museum should book a train ticket to go and see them today!! As mentioned earlier - sets with a selected theme were the norm and the highest elevation of the art in terms of status.
Our Swan Hunt Tapestry was part of a set of 36 hunting scene tapestries produced by the Medici workshops between 1566 and 1582. They were woven from cartoons by two artists - Giovanni Stradano (who did the majority of the designs) and Alessandro Allori (who did a small number of them). They must have been important from the start as contemporary 16th century art historian Giorgio Vasari described them as "bird catching scenes". They appear to have been commissioned as a tribute to Lorenzo de Medici, the founder of the Poggio villa, who had a great interest in hunting and who also wrote a poem entitled "Ucellagione di Starne" (catching partridge) but also known as "Caccia col Falcone" (falconry). The original concept seems to have been compromised though at an early stage with some of the tapestries showing scenes involving the hunting of a wider range of animals but when Francesco I came to the fore the weaving turned again to birds and four tapestries designed by Allori were woven of which this was one. Fragments of two of the others (Wild Goose Hunt and Wild Duck Hunt) survive in Siena but the fourth (Heron Hunt) has been lost.
Swans (definitely a non PC subject today) were hunted by the elite for many centuries and their meat was considered a delicacy in many European courts. In England, during Elizabeth I's reign, swan was a popular feast dish and birds would be magnificently displayed on the banqueting table packed with other roasted birds inside them and stuffed!
This tapestry shows swans being hunted with guns and dogs. The image shows a man with a matchlock gun - a type of weapon widely used in hunting during the 16th century.
Though my photographs don't reveal it too well - the borders of the tapestry make references to Lorenzo's poetry and his interests in falconry. In the upper corners of the border there are two men with falcons on their arms and at other points there are 2 pairs of falcons perched on medallions. In the "Wild Goose Hunt" tapestry - falconry was the main subject theme.
Today these images depict a narrative which is abhorrent to many and swans are thankfully protected in many countries, but considering the subjects of the tapestries in context provides a fascinating insight in to courtly life in a society where hunting birds was a prestigious and important activity. Viewing a tapestry is truly a look through a window into a forgotten world where the written word doesn't do it justice.
As I said earlier - viewing tapestries is satisfying on a whole variety of levels. I hope the subject of this one doesn't cause offence!!
Ciao and until next time
Ian
I've always been intrigued by tapestries - by their aesthetic beauty, the skill involved in making them, the time it took to produce them and their significance as social documents. I was delighted to find an unusual one on display at the Medici Villa - Poggio a Caiano when we visited in June. It was titled "The Swan Hunt" and I took great pleasure in examining it in detail. It's shown below.
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| THE SWAN HUNT TAPESTRY ON DISPLAY AT THE MEDICI VILLA POGGIO A CAIANO |
Tapestries were commissioned with a design or set of designs being produced by an artist for the patron and when this was approved it was then translated in to a full size cartoon which the weavers would work from to produce the tapestry. Weavers sat in front of a loom strung with vertical woolen threads (warp threads) and looked through these to the cartoon behind. Laboriously the weaver would then insert vegetable dyed coloured weft threads of wool and often silk to make the picture. The weaving process took place from the back so the final image was a reverse image of the one on the cartoon. It would take months and sometimes years to weave the picture which might be one of a set.
 |
| SCENES OF CONTEMPORARY TAPESTRY WEAVING DEMONSTRATE TECHNIQUES WHICH HAVEN'T CHANGED IN CENTURIES |
Subjects for tapestries in artistic terms ranged from the depiction of biblical stories, to narratives from classical mythology as might be expected but from the medieval period onwards contemporary subjects focusing on the countryside, forests and the practice of hunting were always popular. Hunting was the sport of kings and the elite and was thus suited to the production of these status objects. Anyone who has not seen the set of Devonshire Hunting Tapestries which are in the Victorian and Albert Museum should book a train ticket to go and see them today!! As mentioned earlier - sets with a selected theme were the norm and the highest elevation of the art in terms of status.
Our Swan Hunt Tapestry was part of a set of 36 hunting scene tapestries produced by the Medici workshops between 1566 and 1582. They were woven from cartoons by two artists - Giovanni Stradano (who did the majority of the designs) and Alessandro Allori (who did a small number of them). They must have been important from the start as contemporary 16th century art historian Giorgio Vasari described them as "bird catching scenes". They appear to have been commissioned as a tribute to Lorenzo de Medici, the founder of the Poggio villa, who had a great interest in hunting and who also wrote a poem entitled "Ucellagione di Starne" (catching partridge) but also known as "Caccia col Falcone" (falconry). The original concept seems to have been compromised though at an early stage with some of the tapestries showing scenes involving the hunting of a wider range of animals but when Francesco I came to the fore the weaving turned again to birds and four tapestries designed by Allori were woven of which this was one. Fragments of two of the others (Wild Goose Hunt and Wild Duck Hunt) survive in Siena but the fourth (Heron Hunt) has been lost.
Swans (definitely a non PC subject today) were hunted by the elite for many centuries and their meat was considered a delicacy in many European courts. In England, during Elizabeth I's reign, swan was a popular feast dish and birds would be magnificently displayed on the banqueting table packed with other roasted birds inside them and stuffed!
This tapestry shows swans being hunted with guns and dogs. The image shows a man with a matchlock gun - a type of weapon widely used in hunting during the 16th century.
 |
| DETAIL OF THE MAN WITH A MATCHLOCK GUN POINTING AT A FLOUNDERING SWAN |
Today these images depict a narrative which is abhorrent to many and swans are thankfully protected in many countries, but considering the subjects of the tapestries in context provides a fascinating insight in to courtly life in a society where hunting birds was a prestigious and important activity. Viewing a tapestry is truly a look through a window into a forgotten world where the written word doesn't do it justice.
As I said earlier - viewing tapestries is satisfying on a whole variety of levels. I hope the subject of this one doesn't cause offence!!
Ciao and until next time
Ian
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