Shopping Cart
*continental US addresses only
0
In the era of social media algorithms, many textile enthusiasts are used to seeing the same types of content repeatedly featured across platforms. Recent years have brought a promising revival of interest in tapestry weaving and appreciation of its cultural value. Yet there has been a heavy bias towards contemporary weavers, often based in the US or Western Europe, and a focus on a handful of big names from the last century, such as Anni Albers and Sheila Hicks. Their time in the spotlight is well-deserved and heartening to see! Yet tapestry weaving has a rich global history, which is equally fascinating but often overlooked.
In this article, we will dip our toes into this global heritage, by highlighting a handful of incredible tapestry artists from across the world, both in the present and from the past. Hopefully this will provide a glimpse and a gentle encouragement to delve deeper into global textile traditions and discover artists who offer a different perspective and their own unique approach on tapestry weaving.
D.Y. Begay is a Diné (Navajo) textile artist, whose contemporary tapestries are evocative of her culture and homeland, Tsélání, in the Diné (Navajo) reservation. Begay is a fourth-generation weaver who draws upon traditional weaving techniques as well as exploring and experimenting with dyes from Tsélání’s plants and insects, and the natural wool tones of her Churro sheep. Her powerful gradations of color harmonize land and sky, drawing the viewer into the mesa and skyscapes of her homeland.
There is an excellent retrospective of her work, Sublime Light: Tapestry Art of DY Begay, at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington DC until July 13, 2025.
Website: http://navajo-indian.com/
Igshaan Adams is an interdisciplinary artist whose practice includes weaving, sculpture and installation. Adams’ work explores the complexities of identity and his own experiences growing up in apartheid-era South Africa. His pieces are often interlaced and embellished with glass, beads, metal and other objects. His Desire Lines series focuses on the visible traces and impressions left behind by humans on their environment, such as the informal pathways created by foot traffic between communities forcibly segregated during Apartheid.
Instagram: @igshaan.adams
Igshaan Adams, Bonteheuwel / Epping, 2021 wood, painted wood, plastic, glass, stone and glass beads, seashells, polyester and nylon rope, cotton rope, chain, wire, cotton twine 495 x 1170 cm. 195 x 460 3/4 in. © Igshaan Adams. Courtesy the artist, Thomas Dane Gallery and blank projects.
Igshaan Adams, Salat Aljamaeat Min Bonteheuwel vi, 2024 cotton twine, polypropylene and polyester rope, wooden, plastic, glass, synthetic, semi-precious stone and cowrie shell beads, mohair, cotton fabric, gold and silver chain, tiger tail wire 146 x 111 cm. 57 1/2 x 43 3/4 in. © Igshaan Adams. Courtesy the artist, Thomas Dane Gallery and blank projects. Photo: Andrea Rossetti
Hannah Ryggen was a Swedish-born weaver who lived in Norway during the rise of fascism in Europe and both World Wars. From her rural outpost on the Norwegian coast, Ryggen wove with wool from her sheep, dyed with foraged materials. Yet her striking tapestries reached far beyond her immediate context to directly engage with, and strongly critique, the political upheaval and authoritarianism of the time.
Every three years, there is a large exhibition of Ryggen’s weavings in Norway – the perfect excuse to plan a visit. The latest triennial, Mater, focuses on the role of mothers and women, as well as the material world in Ryggen’s work. It will be on display in several venues around Trondheim in Norway until September 14, 2025.
Hannah Ryggen: Mother’s Heart, 1947. Tapestry in wool, linen and silk, 190 x 186 cm, Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseum, Trondheim, ©H. Ryggen 2025, Photo: Freia Beer.
Hannah Ryggen: Jul Kvale,1956. Tapestry in wool and linen, 190 x 200 cm, Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseum, Trondheim, ©H. Ryggen 2025, Photo: Freia Beer.
Hannah Ryggen: 6 October 1942, 1943. Tapestry in wool and linen, 175 x 419.5 cm, Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseum, Trondheim, ©H. Ryggen 2025, Photo: Freia Beer.
Aino Kajaniemi is a Finnish tapestry weaver whose atmospheric works tell stories of life’s complexity and emotions. She uses a unique technique that exposes the warp and structure of the fabric, delicately tracing the lines of her forms in an almost drawn way. Her subtle color palette lends an intimate and introspective air to her works. Her work is currently on display at the Gallery Flow in London and she will be presenting at the British Tapestry Group 20th Anniversary Symposium on 17 August in Dumfries, Scotland.
Instagram: @Aino.Kajaniemi
Website: www.ainokajaniemi.com
Aino Kajaniemi, The Surface of Time, 59 x 70cm. Photo: Flow Gallery.
Aino Kajaniemi, Sounder, 56.25 x 220.25 cm. Photo: Aino Kajaniemi
Aino Kajaniemi, Depression, 2022, 125 x 130 cm; Photo: Aino Kajaniemi
Krystyna Wojtyna Drouet was a Polish tapestry weaver whose works gained prominence in the 1960s. Her work explored personal experiences and human connection, with a characteristic figurative and textural style. She primarily worked with hand-spun wool and natural plant dyes, and often included natural materials such as sisal and raffia, as well as ceramic elements.
Krystyna Wojtyna-Drouet, Exhibition at Polana Institute, Courtesy of the artist and Polana Institute, photo: Jędrzej Sokołowski
Krystyna Wojtyna-Drouet, Exhibition at Polana Institute, Courtesy of the artist and Polana Institute, photo: Jędrzej Sokołowski
Krystyna Wojtyna-Drouet, Seaside, 1977, 37 x 61 inches, Photo credit: BrownGrotta Arts
Ramses Wissa Wassefwas an Egyptian architect and art professor who founded the Wissa WassefArt Centre in a village near Cairo in the 1950s, for the local community to learn and experiment with tapestry weaving. His vision emphasised creativity, freedom and innovation, encouraging weavers to create from their imaginations, rather than formal patterns. The centre continues his legacy today.
There is an exhibition featuring a selection of works by weavers from the Wissa Wassef Art Centre at the Berlin State Museums until November 2, 2025.
Instagram: @wissa.wassef.artcenter
Website: www.wissawassef.com
Village of the Fishermen, 2005, Ali Seliem, Wool, Photo: Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre
Green beans and broccoli, 2020, Reda Ahmed, Wool, Photo: Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre
While this is by no means a comprehensive list, hopefully it may inspire you to follow a thread down a new inspirational rabbit hole.
Olga Owczarek is a tapestry weaver and textile artist based in Cornwall, England. Olga finds her inspiration in natural landscapes, history and folklore. You can find more of her work on her website and Instagram.
