Craigie Aitchison - The Stirling Tapestries

THE STIRLING TAPESTRIES CRAIGIE AITCHISON

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Contents Introduction

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Background

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The Chapel Royal Stirling Castle Commission

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Sad Cypresses

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Golgotha

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Crucifixion

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Deposition

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Lamb Ascending

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The Holy Isle

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A Personal Reminiscence

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Thanks...

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CRAIGIE

AITCHISON R.A. (1926 – 2009) THE STIRLING TAPESTRIES This set of six tapestries conceived and designed by Craigie Aitchison represents the artist’s sole major work in this medium. Although produced posthumously, the tapestries are a faithful realization of the artist’s intent - a fulfilment of a project he treasured.

They are infused with Aitchison’s superb command of colour and proportion, not to mention his seldom tapped narrative talent.

The production of the tapestries has been facilitated by a generous donation by an admirer of the late artist.

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Background Craigie Aitchison was always attracted by tapestry. Born and brought up in Edinburgh, the Dovecot Tapestry Workshops there was already, during his infancy, a flourishing factory of high quality weaving. Indeed, during the 1920s a fresh enthusiasm for tapestry infected collectors.

The shipping magnate, Sir William Burrell, is a prime example. His collection of Renaissance tapestries is the glory of Glasgow’s world renowned Burrell Collection.

It was though only an eccentric band of artist-technicians who dedicated themselves to this craft during the early part of the last century. Aitchison, whose formative years were the 1950s, was scarcely likely to follow in their footsteps.

His first calling was the law (his father was an eminent Scottish barrister and onetime Lord Advocate), and when, having moved to London with his mother, he enrolled at the Slade School of Art, Aitchison was absorbed

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into a culture which esteemed draughtsmanship above all else; no craft was part of his curriculum.

Nevertheless, Aitchison’s propensity towards composing his pictures in broad, perfectly judged expanses of colour (a talent appreciated by his first dealer, Helen Lessore, who identified ‘something Japanese’ in his approach) meant he was a ‘natural’ when it came to composing pictures on a large scale. The power of tapestry depends on scale and cunning simplicity.

Tellingly, one of Aitchison’s first successful paintings, ‘Dovecot Tapestry Still Life’ is a painting based on a tapestry.

During his last years Aitchison revisited the Dovecot Tapestry Workshops, and some small samples of tapestry based upon a few of his pictures were woven with a view to a more ambitious project. Sadly this could never be realized.

The Chapel Royal Stirling Castle Commission In the mid 1990s Aitchison cooperated with the writer Andrew Gibbon-Williams on his biography, ‘Craigie: The Art of Craigie Aitchison’. Both Gibbon-Williams and Aitchison shared Welsh ancestry, and the author had studied and lived in Scotland since the 1970s.

While this book was in its final stages of production, Historic Scotland – the Scottish equivalent to English heritage launched a competition. Historic Scotland’s aim was to solicit designs from contemporary artists for a set of tapestries to be hung in the Chapel Royal of Stirling Castle. This was a brave and innovative concept. Stirling Castle is arguably of greater historical importance than it’s near visual twin in Edinburgh.

In its original chapel, Mary Queen of Scots’ son, the future King James I of England, was baptized. In the intervening centuries, however, the present building had decayed to such an extent that a major restoration was called for. Originally, the chapel’s walls had been hung with tapestries, but these medieval works had long since disappeared. Historic Scotland decided a set of contemporary tapestries would form an appropriate complement to the new interior.

Aitchison had spent much of his childhood in the vicinity of Stirling. His grandfather has been the minister of the Presbyterian kirk at Falkirk.

He had spent holidays in the famous ‘Dunmore Pineapple’ – a Romantic eighteenth century gatehouse, at that time owned by his grandparents. (It is nowadays available for holiday lets from The Landmark Trust.)

Aitchison was therefore thrilled by the prospect of his own works inhabiting this historical context at Stirling. That much of his preferred subject matter had long comprised Christian iconography was clearly an added enticement. Feeling himself to be more than adequately qualified therefore, the artist spent several months in close cooperation with his biographer, devising a suitable scheme. A set of superb highgloss coloured photographs was produced by the London firm Prudence Cuming by way of a proposal. And a number of computerized images of the proposed tapestries in situ were also produced in order to enhance Aitchison’s submission.

Sadly, Historic Scotland failed to raise sufficient funding for its project and no tapestries was ever commissioned.

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Sad Cypresses Three cypress trees, traditionally associated with mourning, stand in a sparse landscape. This sets a poignant tone for the narrative.

Large: Edition of 5 Size: 215cm x 185cm Medium: Edition of 7 Size: 160cm x 140cm Small: Edition of 10 Size: 120cm x 104cm

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Golgotha A single bird sits on a leafless tree. Soon the bird will sing no more. The sun will set. The natural tree will be usurped by the man-made cross.

Large: Edition of 5 Size: 215cm x 185cm Medium: Edition of 7 Size: 160cm x 140cm Small: Edition of 10 Size: 120cm x 104cm

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Crucifixion The heavens have darkened at the moment of Christ’s extreme agony. Symmetrically placed flashes of lightening allude to the biblical text.

Large: Edition of 5 Size: 215cm x 185cm Medium: Edition of 7 Size: 160cm x 140cm Small: Edition of 10 Size: 120cm x 104cm

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Deposition Christ’s body has been taken down from the cross and appears limp and lifeless as the first glimmers of light return to the heavens.

Large: Edition of 5 Size: 215cm x 185cm Medium: Edition of 7 Size: 160cm x 140cm Small: Edition of 10 Size: 120cm x 104cm

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Lamb Ascending In a symbolic reference to the Resurrection, the Lamb of God climbs up to heaven, and the sun of the New Dispensation rises.

Large: Edition of 5 Size: 215cm x 185cm Medium: Edition of 7 Size: 160cm x 140cm Small: Edition of 10 Size: 120cm x 104cm

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The Holy Isle Christianity has been established in Scotland in perpetuity; its contemporary relevance is pointed up by a modern ship passing the holy island.

Large: Edition of 5 Size: 215cm x 185cm Medium: Edition of 7 Size: 160cm x 140cm Small: Edition of 10 Size: 120cm x 104cm

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A Personal Reminiscence : On a bleak February morning I picked up Craigie from Edinburgh Airport and we drove up through mist and sleet to Stirling. Craigie always loved coming back to Scotland, and when he did we usually found ourselves having a pub lunch on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile. But this day was to be a ‘working day’, and our aim was to appraise the newly restored Chapel Royal at Stirling Castle – to try to get an idea of how the tapestry scheme he had devised would look in situ.

Odd, unlikely - usually amusing - things always seemed to happen when Craigie was around. En route to the Cotswolds once, we stopped for a snack at Woodstock, Craigie’s two adored Bedlington terriers in tow. As we crossed the road to the pub, a tweedy lady appeared from nowhere and screamed out ‘Oh! Look! There are the Wayneys’ (Here we were in the middle of nowhere,

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and a complete stranger, who clearly knew about Craigie’s pictures featuring one of his previous Bedlington terriers named Wayney, had recognized him!). On another occasion, in a taxi on our way to Orlando Campbell’s club in Green Street, Mayfair, Craigie’s closest friend Alex Mayall decided Craigie needed making up. By the time we arrived he was in full maquillage. Nobody thought this in the least peculiar.

‘Hi Craigie!’, saluted Lucian Freud, without batting an eyelid. Craigie was still ‘made up’ when we got up the following morning.

Our Stirling expedition was no exception – even if less funny from my point of view. I parked on the esplanade in front of the castle, jumped out, and slid on the icy cobbles as I opened the car door for Craigie. Great pain. Later I discovered I’d broken two ribs.

Neither Craigie nor I liked formal, ‘official’ things, but he was chatty with the Historic Scotland team that greeted us and showed us around.

I think he thought he had the commission ‘in the bag’, so I had to keep explaining he was only one of several artists making a submission to the competition. We were both much displeased when several months later Historic Scotland politely informed us that its fund-raising efforts had foundered, and so it was unlikely Craigie’s tapestries would ever see the light of day. We had put so much thought and effort into the submission. Craigie adored the photographs produced, and typically commented, ‘They’re better than the pictures!’. I often used to find him in his studio with a paint-spattered copy of my biography at his feet. ‘I’m cribbing from my own pictures.’, he would say, chirpily, and a bit guiltily .

Craigie was the most benign gossip I’ve ever come across.

He loved the emotional and relationship ups and downs of all and sundry – from politicians (Tony Blair was always ‘Mr’ Blair), to the royal family (‘Her Majesty never cried when Diana died’, he quipped as the Queen was shown shedding a tear at the decommissioning of the royal yacht), and he loved me pointing out the various locations of rows with my former partner as we trekked the streets of Edinburgh.

He was still on form when I last visited him a month before he died. He was suffering recurrent bouts of giddiness. ‘I keep getting this Mickey Mouse thing’, he said, making his way towards the whisky bottle. It was a characteristically baffling Craigie comment. I, like many others, miss him acutely.

Andrew Gibbon-Williams

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Thanks...

The Stirling Tapestries have been hand-woven by expert weavers with respect for the artist’s intentions at Wuhan in China. A weft of handdyed New Zealand wool and silk has been woven upon a warp of cotton/ wool mix.

Thanks are due to Mr. Howard Bilton and the Sovereign Art Foundation for sponsoring this project, and to the Trustees of the Estate of Craigie Aitchison represented by Mr. Terry Danziger Miles of the Timothy Taylor Gallery, for helping facilitate it.

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THE STIRLING TAPESTRIES - CRAIGIE AITCHISON

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