Formerly Reader
Senior Lecturer in Charge of Tapestry.
School of Drawing and Painting.
Edinburgh College of Art.
1941 Born Perth.
1959-63 Edinburgh College of Art, Diploma in Stained Glass.
1963-64 Andrew Grant Postgraduate Scholarship – Tapestry.
1964-65 Assistant to Archie Brennan
1965-70 Edinburgh Tapestry Co.
First SCC Count Tarnowski Award
1967-73 Lecturer in Tapestry, ECA
1969 Scottish Arts Council Award to Young Artists.
1973-94 Lecturer in charge of Tapestry.
1973-76 Council Member SSA
1975 Acting President SSA
Interim Director of Weaving Edinburgh Tapestry Co.
1976-82 Council Member STAG (Scottish Tapestry Artists’ Group)
1977 SAC Awards Committee
1979-80 Organiser EIF Exhibition – “Masterweavers”
1983 Council Member TEAM (The Edinburgh Arts Movement)
1994 Reader, Heriot Watt University.
Senior Lecturer in Charge of Tapestry.
1997-00 ECA Academic Council Member
1998-00 Elected Staff Representative ECA Board of Governors.
1999 Acting Joint Head: School of Drawing & Painting.
2006 Retired from ECA
2006 to date Tapestry Artist
2009-12 President and founder member of STAR*
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
1963 The Arts Council of GB (Scottish Committee) “Leaded, Concreted & Sandblasted Glass” RSA, Edinburgh.
1965 Second International Tapestry Biennale. Lausanne
“Weavers from the Dovecot Studio”. Whitworth Gallery, Manchester.
1967 Third International Tapestry Biennale. Lausanne.
1969 “Tapestries and Ceramics Today”. ESU, Edinburgh.
“Legacy of Scotland”. Hammond Museum, N. Salem. NY. USA.
1970 “Modern British Hangings” SAC.Edinburgh.
“Ten Years of Tapestry”. ECA. Edinburgh.
1971 “Experimental Textiles – international tapestries.” Camden Arts Centre, London.
1971 “Scottish Crafts” RSM, Edinburgh.
1972 “New 57 Birthday Show.” William Robertson Building, EU, Edinburgh.
1972 “Woven Structures” Camden Arts Centre, London.
1972 “Tapestries from the Dovecote (sic) Studios”. MacRobert Centre, University of Stirling.
1973 “Craftsman’s Art”. V&A, London.
1973 “L’Ecosse, La Femme et L’Art”. Galerie des Ponchettes, Nice France.
1973 “Fifteen Weavers”. BCC, London.
1973 “Aspects of Modern British Crafts”. RSM, Edinburgh.
1973 “Europhalia – Hand & Machine”. Brussels. Belgium.
1973 “Edinburgh the Capital of Scotland”. Osaka. Japan.
1974 “Tapestries from Edinburgh”. BCC, London.
1974 “Small Tapestries”. SAC, Edinburgh.
1974 “Tapestries from Edinburgh”. Stirling Gallery, Stirling.
1975 First Triennale of Textile Art. Lodz. Poland.
1976 “Miniatures in Fibre” Ararat Regional Gallery & Distelfink Gallery, Melbourne. Australia.
1976-8 Second International Biennale of Miniature Textiles. BCC, London, Holland, Switzerland & Australia. (selector & exhibitor)
1976-8 “Small Tapestries”. SAC Travelling Show. SAC, Edinburgh and Norway.
1977 “Scottish Tapestry – Loose Ends, Close Ties and Other Structures – The Way Ahead.” ECA, Edinburgh.
1977 First STAG Show. Collins Centre, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh and RCA, London.
1977 “Masterpiece”. Silver Jubilee Show. BCC, London.
1978 “Tapestries”. (two person exhibition) Talbot Rice Art Centre, EU, Crawford Arts Centre, St Andrews, and BCC. London
1978 “Tapestries”. Villefort, Cevennes. France.
1978 Third Triennale of Textile Arts. Lodz. Poland.
1978-82 Third International Biennale of Miniature Textiles. BCC and world tour.
1979 Second STAG show. Fruitmarket Gallery and London.
1979 “Star Quality”. BCC, London.
1979 “Malerei und Wandbehange aus Schottland”. Oberrhein Messe, Ortenauhalle, Offenburg. Baden. W. Germany.
1979 “Tapestries of Today”. sponsored by Crown Wallpaper & Contemporary Arts Society, Reed House, London and British tour.
1979-82 STAG Small Tapestries Tour. Edinburgh, Scottish tour and New Zealand.
1980 STAG invited work Aberdeen City Art Gallery.
1980 “Craft of the Weaver”. BCC. London.
1980 Fourth International Biennale of Miniature Textiles. London, Edinburgh, Lausanne, Australia and USA.
1980 “Masterweavers”. SAC/EIF Exhibition. RSA Edinburgh and British tour.
1980 Third STAG show. City Arts Centre, Edinburgh, Nottingham and London.
1981 “Contemporary Tapestry”. Sainsbury Arts Centre, UEA, Norwich.
1981 “Textile Kunst ‘81”. Linz and Vienna. Austria.
1983 “Textiles Today – Attitudes to Tapestry”. John Hansard Gallery, University of Southampton.
1983 First TEAM exhibition. Talbot Rice Art Centre, EU, Edinburgh.
1985 “Straight Off the Wall”. Dublin-Edinburgh EIF show. ECA.
1985 TEAM Miniature Tapestry Exhibition. an Lantern, Stornoway and Scottish tour.
1986 “Miniatures to Australia”. Ararat and tour of Victoria State, Australia.
1986 “Tapestry – Contemporary Imagery, Ancient Tradition”. Washington State. USA.
1988 TEAM Show.“Loose Ends, Close Ties and Other Structures”. TRAC, UE, Edinburgh and tour including Canada.
1988 “Fibre Art in the 80s”. Sculpture Symposium. Dublin.
1988 Seventh Miniature Textile Biennale. Szombathely Museum, Hungary.
1989-90 “Contemporary Tapestry”. University of Southampton. British & Hungarian tour.
1989-91 “The Maker’s Art”. Australian tour.
1990 Eighth Miniature Textile Biennale. Szombathely Museum, Hungary.
1990-1 “The Art Machine”. McLellan Galleries, Glasgow and the Barbican, London.
1991 “The SSA Centenary Exhibition”. RSA. Edinburgh.
1991 “The Postcard show”. Collective Gallery, Edinburgh.
1992-3 “Paneuro-Minitex MCMXCIII”. Edinburgh, Vilnius, Riga, St.Petersburg and Piskov, Russia.
1992 “CD Show”. Collective Gallery.
1993 “From the Margin”. ECA and Scottish tour.
1993 “CD 2”. Collective Gallery.
1994 “11 From Zero”. Bonhoga Gallery, Shetland.
1994 “Edinburgh – Lithuania.” Miniature textiles. Edinburgh and Vilnius.
1994 “Small Tapestries from Edinburgh”. Dollar Academy.
1994 “CD Show 3 – the Finale”. Collective Gallery, Edinburgh.
1995 My work from the collection at Szombathely Museum shown in Nyiregyhaza, Hungary.
1995 “6x6x8x8x2” EIF show. ECA. Edinburgh.
1995 Exchange exhibition of Laminates. Canberra, Chicago, Dundee, Edinburgh, Dublin, London, Tokyo, New Zealand, Alberta and Saskatoon.
1995 Fife Art Bus: “Small Space Craft” – Arts in Fife, Fife Regional Council Education Committee and the Scottish Arts Council- Travelling Gallery show
1995 eca exposicion. Castillo de SoutomaiorArcade, Pontevedra. Spain
1996-7 “The Travelling Box Show”. Australian tour, (ten venues.
CANBERRA School of Art. Australia National University.
STANTHORPE Regional Gallery QUEENSLAND
University of SOUTH QUEENSLAND. Toowoomba.
S.W. College of T.A.F.E. Warrnambool. VICTORIA.
Monash University, MELBOURNE.
Art Gallery of TASMANIA, Launceston.
University of Wollangong, N.S.W
Charles Sturt University, WAGGAWAGGA NSW.
ADELAIDE Festival Centre. South Australia.
Edith Cowan University, PERTH. Western Australia.
1996 “The Woven Image”. The Barbican, London and British tour. (selector) (6 venues)
The Barbican. LONDON.
Cartwright Hall. BRADFORD.
Mappin Art Gallery. SHEFFIELD.
SUNDERLAND City Arts Centre.
NEWPORT Museum & Art Gallery.
ABERDEEN Art Gallery.
1997 “Threads – Fiber Art in the 90s”. New Jersey Center for the Visual Arts, Summit, NJ. USA.
1997 “The Box of Delights”. Old Town Hall Art Gallery, Kedainiai Lithuania.
1997 My work from the collection at Szombathely Museum- shown in Prague,
1997-8 “Telling Tales”. work from the Crafts’ Council Collection, Towner Art Gallery & Museum, Eastbourne.
1998 “Recent Acquisitions”. Aberdeen City Art Gallery.
1998 Speaker at Conference “Luxury Art to Fibre Art” at UEA, Norwich
1998 Speaker at Conference V&A , “The Woven Image”,
1998 First International Flag Biennale.on the theme of Liberty, Szombathely. Hungary.
1998 *Twelfth Miniature Textile Biennale. Szombathely Museum, Hungary.
1999 “Woven Intimacies” New Jersey Center for the Visual Arts, Summit, NJ, USA.
1999 *“Edinburgh Makers”. National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto.Japan.
1999 My work from the collection in Szombathely shown in Beckescsaba, Hungary.
2000 Second International Flag Biennale. Szombathely. Hungary.
2001 Skyleo. One person show. Gallery Gallery, Kyoto. Japan.
2001 Karpit. Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest.
2001 “Meeting Points” Artists in Dialogue: an Exhibition for Japan 2001. RMScotland, Edinburgh
2001-2002 TAPESTRY- work selected from the Crafts Council Collection 1973-2000. Crafts Council Gallery London.
2001 TAPESTRY- British Craft at SOFA Chicago 2001 Navy Pier Chicago
2002 “Hmmm…” Work in David Shrigley’s Selection from the Permanent Collection at Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art.
2003 “Object to Draw”, Reinberger Galleries, Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, Ohio USA.
2003 Winner of the competition to design a Tapestry for the Scottish Parliament.
2004 Scottish Parliament Tapestry for the Garden Foyer completed.
2005 Artapestry North Jutland Art Museum Aalborg Denmark and tour.- Krefeld Museum Germany & Jean Lurcat Centre for Contemporary Tapestry Angers, France.
2007 Twelfth Triennale of Tapestry Lodz Poland.
2007 “Tapestries from the Permanent Collection” Ararat Regional Gallery Ararat , Victoria Australia
2008-11 Artapestry 2 North Jutland Art Museum Aalborg Denmark, West Norway Museum of Decorative Arts, Bergen Norway, Jean Lurcat Centre for Contemporary Tapestry Angers, France & Konsthallen Art Museum, Lulea, Sweden.
2009 “Vive la Tapisserie!!” French Institute Edinburgh
2009 3rd International Trienale for Miniature -Textiles – Art Gallery of Szombathely, Hungary
2009 IX Triennale Internationale des mini-textiles -Jean Lurcat Centre for Contemporary Tapestry, Angers. France.
2009 “Suas leis an Oir-Ghreus” – An Lanntair Stornaway Lewis. Hebridean Celtic Festival.
2009 “This is NOW: from Drawing to Contexture” , Edinburgh Art Festival, Patriothall Gallery, WASPS Studios Edinburgh
2010 “Hidden Histories/Partial Paradise” Morley College Gallery London
2010-11 Norwegian Tapestry in an International Context Trondheim Art Museum, Norway
2011 “Vive la Tapisserie!!2 ” French Institute Edinburgh
2011 Finalist in Kate Derum Award for Small Tapestries – Australian Tapestry Workshop Melbourne
2011-2012 That was Then: This is NOW – City Art Centre Edinburgh
2012 “Vive la Tapisserie!! 3” French Institute Edinburgh
2012 4th International Trienale for Miniature -Textiles – Art Gallery of Szombathely, Hungary
2012 Avec ou sans eau? IX Triennale Internationale des mini-textiles – Jean Lurcat Centre for Contemporary Tapestry, Angers. France.
2013 Too web or not too web – X Triennale Internationale des mini-textiles – Jean Lurcat Centre for Contemporary Tapestry, Angers. France.
2013 in perspeXtive – RSA Edinburgh
2014-16 Artapestry4 – pan-European tour beginning in Rovaniemi, Finland
2014-15 Craft Generation – St Andrews Museum
WORKS IN THE COLLECTIONS of
Scottish Parliament
Scottish Gallery of Modern Art.
Victoria and Albert Museum.
Royal Museum of Scotland
Jean Lurcat Centre for Contemporary Tapestry, Angers. France.
Crafts Council Collection, London.
Contemporary Arts Society subsequently gifted to the City Arts Centre, Edinburgh.
Scottish Arts Council Collection subsequently gifted to Royal Museum of Scotland.
Crawford Arts Centre, University of St Andrews, subsequently gifted to Aberdeen City Art Gallery.
Scottish Development Agency Collection, gifted to Royal Museum of Scotland.
Hungarian Textile Collection, Szombathely.
Ararat Regional Art Gallery, Victoria, Australia
University of Stirling.
Tweeddale Building Society.
The List.
Works in public and private collections in U.K., France, Holland, Switzerland, Norway, Canada, and Australia.
Crafts Council Selected Members Index.
Publications and citations.
“Fine Art Weaving”. Irene Waller. Batsford.
“Out of the Dovecot”. Craftwork. July/August 1978.
“Tapestries for Today”. Scots Magazine. August 1981.
“Tapestry”. by Barty Phillips. Phaidon. 1994.
SENSHOKU Alpha, 1998, Japanese magazine.
“Crafts” magazine (Jan/Feb99) , in the series ‘Sources of Inspiration’
Article in ArtSPACE ( Japanese Magazine. Aug1999)
“Artwork”- Parliamentary Privilege – September/October 2004
”Hung Parliament” Homes & Interiors Scotland magazine November 2004
“Crafts” magazine (Jan/Feb05) , in Commissions: New Scottish Parliament
Artapestry2 – journal de l’exposition Angers – musée Jean Lurcat de la tapisseries contemporaine 2006
Long live la tapisserie – en Ecosse! Mary Gladstone Artwork, Number 154.
New culture minister calls for unity on his return to the arts. Mike Russell’s ChoiceSelection in Glasgow Herald 19th February 2009
This is Now: From Drawing to Contexture Susan Mansfield Edinburgh International Arts Festival , The Scotsman August 2009
This is Now: From Drawing to Contexture Embroidery magazine vol 61 Jan/Feb 2010 Carol Jones
Norwegian Textile Art in an International Context by Thomas Cronenberg, Textile Forum 2011
Tapestry: Design and Technique. Joanne Soroka Crowood Press Ltd 2011 x
List magazine Nov 2012 That was then: this is NOW
Tapestry in the City – Then and Now Artwork Dec 2011
Tapestry: a Woven Narrative. Timothy Wilcox, Caron Penney & Fiona Mathison. Black Dog Publishing Co 2012
The Art of Modern Tapestry Elizabeth Cumming and David Weir Lund Humphries 2012
In Search of our National Treasures Mary Gladstone Artwork Nov 2012
Writings/ Lectures by the Artist.
2012 Star Weavers. essay on That was then: This is NOW at City art Centre Edinburgh in Australian Tapestry Workshop magazine 28 edition August 2012
2010 Some Thoughts on Tapestry in Edinburgh essay in Stroud Festival catalogue May 2010
2009 Introduction and essay “On Drawing” in catalogue for “This is NOW: from Drawing to Contexture”
2009. Introduction and afterword for catalogue for Vive la Tapisserie.
2008 Archie Brennan in Edinburgh speech at celebration dinner in his honour in Melbourne read by Susan Mowatt
2006 “Ellen Lenvik -en europeer med nordnorsk aksent” – book to accompany Ellen Lenvik’s retrospective – “30 tapestries-30 years”” co author with Randi Nygaard Lium.
2000. Catalogue for Joanne Soroka’s travelling exhibition, Canada, New York and UK
1998 Catalogue for Fiona Hutchison’s travelling exhibition, .
1995. Catalogue for Ellen Lenvik’s exhibition, “Billevev”. Oslo.
1985. “British Craft Textiles”. edited by Ann Sutton, Tapestry section . Collins.
1980. “Masterweavers”. a definitive history of the Dovecot Studios, published by the SAC and Canongate to coincide with the Edinburgh International Festival exhibition.
1978. “Scottish Tapestry – Archie Brennan”. Craft Chronicles.
1976. “Small Tapestries”. Exhibition catalogue. SAC
Speaker on the BBC Radio 4 programme “A Stitch in Time” (Jan?99).
Speaker at V&A , for “The Woven Image” (11.08.98). and at the “Luxury Art to Fibre Art” at UEA, Norwich (14.03.98)
Introduction – “What is Drawing?” for The Edinburgh Sessions Seminar ECA 1998. “Drawing in the digital age : a necessity or an irrelevance?”.
“Its Tapestry, Kirk, But Not As You Know It” – paper for “The Edinburgh Sessions – a TAPESTRY SEMINAR” 1996.
Organiser and Speaker on “Professional Practice: how to stay afloat after college” for the third Edinburgh Sessions Seminar ECA 2002.
