Back in 2015, I ran a short series of articles on a variety of heritage tapestries that can be found around the globe. These are needlework tapestries that depict a story – usually a rather epic tale – from the heritage of the people who stitch it or of the area in which it is stitched.
Heritage tapestries fascinate me! I love the history they tell, the artistry they display, and the whole idea of Community that revolves around them.
For those of you who are new to the concept of heritage tapestries, or who missed the articles last year, you might find this particular book review of The Art of Narrative Embroidery interesting. If you’ve ever toyed with the idea of organizing a tapestry in your own community, it’s a great place to start!
One of the most intriguing heritage tapestries of today is the Scottish Diaspora Tapestry, which was stitched by people from all around the globe. And right now, the tapestry panels are heading around the globe, which is great news for those of us who can’t make it to the UK to see it.
November 2015 through April 2016 saw the Tapestry Down Under, in Australia and New Zealand. Now, beginning in June through December, the tapestry will be exhibited in North America (specifically, right now, in Canada – there aren’t any dates at the moment for the US).
You can find the list of North American Tour Dates here, on the Scottish Diaspora website. If you happen to be close to any of those Canadian cities, I think it would be well worth the excursion!
More Information & Online Viewing
If you want more information on the Scottish Diaspora Tapestry, you’ll find their website extremely thorough. You can even view each of the panels and read its story. While viewing online can never quite replace the up-close, personal experience of face-to-face viewing in real life, sometimes, you just have to take what you can get! And the website presents the tapestry quite well.
More Heritage Tapestries
If you’re interested in reading about other heritage tapestries, here are a few articles that you might enjoy:
The Prestonpans Tapestry
The Ros Tapestry
Embroidered Stories: Heritage Tapestries
Embroidered Stories: World Wars
I willingly admit, I’m a bit of a sucker for good stories from history. If you are, too, I think you’ll enjoy exploring the whole notion of heritage tapestries!
If you get a chance to visit the Scottish Diaspora Tapestry while it’s on this side of the pond, I’d love to hear all about your experience! I doubt I can make it that far north this year, but I’d love to live vicariously through you, so feel free to drop me a line if you get the chance to see the tapestry in person!
Coming Up on Needle ‘n Thread
I don’t want to promise too much right now, as I’m not exactly sure how things are going to pan out over the next three weeks, but I have high hopes! I’ve recently been taking photos of thread and projects and kits and so forth, and I want to tell you all about them. I’ll also have a personal update for you very soon. And I’m working my darnedest on getting Late Harvest finished, so I can move on to several new projects that I’ve got lined up. And – most exciting of all – I’ve been mucking about with a few designs for some Needle ‘n Thread exclusive projects.
I have a lot planned this summer. I hope you’ll stick around for the fun!
