Chris Ofili's "The Cage Bird's Song"

[LONDONER]

[SIZE="4"]This unveils Chris Ofili’s first designed tapestry; a triptych entitled “The cage Bird’s Song”. The title echoes the writer and black activist Maya Angelou’s powerful autobiography “I Know Why Caged Birds Sing”.

The tapestry is hung against a painted mural designed by the artist especially for its installation in the National Gallery, London. A sequence of swaying, monumental temple dancers (painted by the scenery painters from the Royal Opera House Covent Garden) entice the visitor towards the richly coloured, hand-woven wall-hanging.

Ofili is a British painter who lives and works in Trinidad. Renowned for his fluid and sensual painting style, Ofili’s challenge to the weavers was to capture the qualities of watercolour in thread. He provided them with a preparatory watercolour design which they used as a primary aid during the weaving process. The weavers scaled-up his design on the warp of the loom and spent two and a half years hand weaving the tapestry in close collaboration with the artist.

Ofili explains “The Cage Bird’s Song” is a marriage of watercolour and weaving. I set out to do something free flowing in making a watercolour, encouraging the liquid pigment to form the image, a contrast to the weaving process. With their response, which is an interpretation rather than a reproduction, the weavers have paid a type of homage to the watercolour that I gave them as well as to the weaving process.

On either side of the central panel, a man and a woman draw back curtains to revel an Arcadian scene. Beneath the waterfall, beside lapping waters with the sea behind, a couple recline, their bodies entwined. As the guitar playing man serenades his companion, she drinks a sparkling liquid that is poured in to her glass by a figure hidden above. Oblivious of our gaze,the couple appear absorbed in their actions, but the thunderous sky to the left suggests there is a darkening to come.

Commissioned by the City of London’s Clothworkers’ Company and woven at the Dovecote Tapestry Studio, Edinburgh, the tapestry’s permanent home will be in the Clothworkers’ Hall.

The above text is taken from the exhibition at the National Gallery, London.

In the first three photos I deliberately included the human figures to give scale to the work. The following photos are details of the work so one can appreciate the incredible work of the weavers.

There was a interesting 15 minute film about its creation in which he explained how initially he didn’t want to accept the commission because he was afraid that conditions would be imposed on him by the Clothworkers' Company but they allowed him free rein.

He works in watercolour and wondered how the weavers could possibly translate the subtleties of watercolour using wool. At one point while painting in turquoise, the colour began to run and blend in to the colour alongside. He left it as it was and it was due to the brilliance of the Dovecote Weavers Studio in Edinburgh who explained that instead of using just one colour that would make it look like flat cardboard, they would use up to six. You can see this in the details that I have attached. It’s good to know that there are craftspeople capable of producing such beauty still working in the UK.

[/SIZE]

[princealbertofb]

Wonderful and time consuming work, thanks, [MENTION=18457]LONDONER[/MENTION].

[Emiliano]

Thats really beautiful work, and it really does resemble water color. The idea of painting with thread is really awesome, and it really speaks to the skill of those weavers. Theres also something about having multiple artists work on piece that interests me, like having one create the image and the other translate it to a different medium. Ive been talking about that a lot recently in relation to the Chuck Close mosaics in one of the newest subway stations on 2nd ave. I know theres nothing modern about that, but I still like the idea of it.

I also remember learning about Ofili in an art class, for his piece The Virgin Mary and all the controversy around it while it was at the Brooklyn Museum. Its interesting to see what his other work looks like.

[LONDONER]

[SIZE="4"]Thank you [MENTION=21558]Emiliano[/MENTION], somehow or other I knew that you would be one of the few people who would comment on this. Glad that you found it interesting.

A much better photo that shows it off much better can be seen in this review:

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign...ion-review[/SIZE]

[Emiliano]

[SIZE="4"]Thank you [MENTION=21558]Emiliano[/MENTION], somehow or other I knew that you would be one of the few people who would comment on this. Glad that you found it interesting.

A much better photo that shows it off much better can be seen in this review:

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign...ion-review[/SIZE]

That's not a very positive review

[LONDONER]

That's not a very positive review

Reviews have been very mixed. I sent an e-mail with photos to a lot of my friends and their reactions have been mixed also although one of them commenting on the photo in that reviews said:

Oooh, yes, that is a wonderful setting--doesn't it just shine out like stained glass?

(as you say, very Chagall-esque.)

Which rather goes to prove that everyone has different tastes. Thank heavens for that because if we didn't the world might be a rather boring place.

I see there have been a few views of this thread but only you and one other have commented so maybe they didn't like it either.