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…I could not be more grateful for coming accros this interesting lecture by Anna Forrest and The Warburg Institute from december 2020.

Textile finds are part of these discoveries.

At the Warburg Youtube page is written: “Anna Forrest (National Trust) examines how the recent discoveries at Oxburgh Hall shed light on the vibrant material culture of recusant Catholics at a time of persecution. As the Oxburgh Hall project is still in its early stages, this lecture presents a key opportunity to discover how curators go about analysing objects, and start to formulate conclusions, while a project is still evolving. Dr Tessa Murdoch from the Victoria and Albert Museum acts as respondent for this event.

below:

Titian’s painting “The Supper at Emmaus” shows a tablecloth with a pattern.

In both analyses we only see the lines, I hope to receive higher quality pictures to analyse the textile piece that has been found recently in The Oxburgh Hall. An amazing story !!!

a canvas on a frame

175 € 
donate here

Each untreated canvas comes on a frame 20 x 20 cm.

reconstruction of the canvas of (from top): El Greco The Burial of the Count of Orgaz  (1588); Titian The Vendramin Family (1543-45), Diego Velázquez Saint John in the Wilderness (1622) Diego Velázquez Supper at Emmaus 1620); Caravaggio The Crucifixion of Saint Andrew (1606-07) The Education of the Virgin (1616-17)

collectors / supporters item !

Lab O has been self funded and with support of family donors since 2014. Institutional support came in 2019 for research and a local exhibition. Travel grants made two important presentations possible in 2019.

If you consider to support the research and reconstruction please send an email to canvas@labo.pt or donate below

This box (8×8 cm) comes with a unique reconstruction of the canvas of the painting by:

Diego Velázquez Supper at Emmaus 1620)

Titian The Vendramin Family (1543-45)

El Greco The Burial of the Count of Orgaz (1588)

50€

pay or donate here

Could it be that he first painted the tablecloth on a plain weave canvas and after 10 years he painted on that tablecloth…..

Today I had a closer look to the tablecloth that Titian painted on “The Supper at Emmaus”. It shows (again) the importance of precisely analysing patterns, even if they are ‘only’ painted in a painting. I confess that the similarity in the patterns was a surprise to me and curiousely, I could have analysed this earlier.

I had the thought that he owned the tablecloth that he painted in “The Supper at Emmaus” (1530) and that he about 10 years later painted on that tablecloth “The Vendramin Family(1540-45)

Until today I had not precisely analysed it. I thought that a sample in the V&A collection, dated 1300 was a, left over, piece of this canvas. Beteween the latest 2 patterns is no match.

The pictures

-Titian painted the pattern of the tablecloth in “The Supper at Emmaus” (1530) the painting is on a plain weave canvas.

-Titian painted “The Vendramin Family” (1540-45) on a canvas with a pattern.

If we compare both patterns we see these similarities: compare the coloured lines ! Not sure about the 5 ‘spots’ in the tablecloth in the middle of each repeat but in the weave draft this could to be worked out very differently…

One of the reasons for using patterned canvases by the Old Masters is the width of these textiles. No or less seams were needed for the large paintings (literature sources)

I did a pilot and joined the selvedges of the reconstruction e.i. I joined each weft on both sides…visible because the selfedges of my textiles being irregular not because of being it a seam….

today at 18.30 GMT

Free tickets: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/…/woven-ground-weaving… Geoff Diego Litherland, Angharad Mclaren, Helena Loermans and Marta Pokojowczyk discuss making and painting handwoven canvasses. Helena Loermans is a weaver who has been researching and recreating some of the canvasses that Velasquez, El Greco and others painted on, what’s unique about her work and research is that these canvasses have often been intricately patterned fabrics. She has been skilfully recreating these for conservation reasons and has worked with museums worldwide, uncovering a lost craft along the way. Loermans has also been collaborating with artist Marta Pokojowczyk in exploring the relationship to her canvasses and painting. Concurrent to Loermans research and practice Litherland and McLaren have been developing their own patterned woven canvasses to paint on, one of the focuses of the work is to highlight the importance and materiality of the fabric support for the painting. The event will include two short presentations from the artists before an in conversation where parallels will be discussed between the work, as well as the importance of learning from history and understanding and revisiting craft practices. Chaired by Haarlem Artspace Co – Director Catherine Rogers with time for audience questions.Thanks to Haarlem Artspace for inviting me

left: weave draft of the canvas of El Greco’s paintings in the “Iglesia de la Caridad de Illescas” (17th century) Source xray image: Bruquetas 2002, p 239

right:weave draft of a 14th century textile preserved at Hildesheim Germany in the Church of St Godehard

source: Six, J. “Kruiswerk, Lavendel, Pavy en Pellen,” Het Huis, Oud & Nieuw, vol. 10 (1912), pp. 105-122.Medieval Textiles 31, 2002 Carolyn Priest-Dorman

Noite Europeia de Investigadores

…not yet safe enough to travel by myself, but happy to write that the reconstructions of the canvases have travelled to be involved in cooperation with:

Factum Foundation for high resolution 3D images,

Glasgow University for mecanical stretch tests

and the Prado Museum for X-ray experiments…