Thursday 1 February 2018

Weaving language and tapestry making

Hi everyone!

I'm very sorry I have been absent for such a long time! But if you know me, you know that this is my usual pattern.

The visit to an exhibition on William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement has inspired me to look for videos that show the beauty of craftmanship. This one, apart from being extraordinarily informative as well as wonderfully produced, is intended to remind you of the metaphors we saw in class not long ago.

The "warp and woof", meaning the foundation of something, is a typical example of a metaphor that alludes to the art of weaving (although the technical terms preferred nowadays are warp and weft), but the most interesting idioms we could see were those in which the background metaphor was "storytelling is weaving": the thread of discourse, the loom of language, to weave a story; as well as those where we understand the metaphor "storytelling is lying": to fabricate, the fabric/tissue of lies, to pull the wool over somebody's eyes, to make up of whole cloth, to spin a yarn. Weaving and language thus become intricately interwoven (see what I did there?) through an underlying metaphor: the storyteller and poet as a weaver of language.

With this in mind, it was only natural that the first video about arts and crafts that I wanted to present to you had to do with weaving: here you have the art of tapestry making at the Manufacture Nationale des Gobelins in Paris.

The activities I propose for this video are fairly open questions, because I don't want to detract from the enjoyment of watching the art that these women (only women in the video!) bring to life. The explanations are so clear that I also wanted you to focus on the accuracy of language in the voiceover without thinking much about exercises.

So, share with us in the comments: which of the jobs carried out at the Gobelins do you think is the hardest, and why? Which one would you rather do if you could work there, and why? Try to use the specific language you can hear in the video.

Optional: note down all instances of the passive voice.

Enjoy!








12 comments:

  1. Awesome!!!!!! I have never had such a peaceful feeling watching a video!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi everyone.
    All works carried out at the Gobelins are extremely hard, but if I would have to choose one, I would say “weaving”, because the weavers need to mantain a high level of concentration in this art.;however, they will feel an enormous satisfaction when they see these stunning and breathtaking works of arts , although it takes years to finish a tapestry.
    They are extraordinary artists.
    Gemma Martínez.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Imagine the concentration required to weave these huge tapestries, Gemma! A whole new level of focus, I'd say...

      Thanks for your answer!

      Delete
  3. Hello!
    I found the video relaxing and the narrator's voice really soothing. I loved the video!

    I think the hardest jobs they carry out are weaving and dying the threads, just because it requieres a lot of concentration and attention to detail. However, if I could do one of these jobs, I would definitely be a weaver! It seems like it would be very relaxing!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for your choices, Silvia! It does seem like the dyeing process could go wrong at any point, with such minimal variations affecting the end result!

      (btw, notice I'm using dyeing with an "e", as this is the standard speeling nowadays to distinguish it from "dying" of the verb "to die").

      Thanks a lot!

      Delete
  4. Hi everyone!

    No dout each and every work at Les Gobelins is really hard and requires a lot of skill.
    However, the hardest in my opinion is the process of dying because the formulas need to be so precise and corrected until getting the perfect colour.
    My choice would be a Weaver because with your patience and skill you can create a masterpiece with just a complex design and months of hard work.

    Regards,

    Raquel Otero

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, "just" a design and some months of hard work, you're right! The magic of artistic creation...

      Thank you for your choices, Raquel!

      Delete
  5. Hello
    It's antes amazing vídeo, where i've discovered that this job is still alive and It isn't only to restore old tapestry
    I consider that, the hardest role is dye expert, not only because they are working with chemical substance and steams, but they would probably have to spend many years learning the formules and how do they manage to get new colours.
    I would keen the wave role, because i love to make handcrafting, and I regard this craft one of the most complex in handcrafting arts

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Almudena! Have you considered loom weaving? It looks like it could be a hobby for you.

      Delete
  6. Hello
    It's difficult to decide the job that is the hardest. I considered it as an unknown art and now I am aware about all the required processes to make a tapestry that go from desingning the tapestry to the weaving. I might find so hard when weavers have to draw essential lines in a plastic that will sirve as a visual guide for weaving.
    If I have the opportunity to do this craft during one day, I would rather pick up the bobbins and decide the best color to weave and see the results.

    Thanks for the video Bea

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thank you, Toni! You're the only one who has chosen to work with the bobbins, and I'm with you, it is amazing to see how they combine colours in them according to the initial design. And the end result is, as you hint, a mystery: you have to weave it to see it.

    Thanks to you!

    ReplyDelete