Contemporary Textile Art: The Collection of the Pierre Pauli Association

Espace Arlaud, Lausanne (Switzerland)
6 July – 27 August 2000
Swiss people remember well the International Tapestry Biennials which made Lausanne the capital of textile art for a period of more than thirty years (1962–1995). Pierre Pauli, together with the artist Jean Lurçat, was one of the instigators of these events. After his death in 1970, artists founded an association bearing his name as a tribute and built up an important collection of works by well-known international artists such as Magdalena Abakanowicz, Olga de Amaral, Jagoda Buic, Elsi Giauque and Lenore Tawney.

Collections of contemporary textile art are very rare in Europe, and the Pierre Pauli Association’s collection is all the more interesting in that it possesses examples of all the different trends: tapestries, reliefs, sculptures and installations. The revival in this field was to be seen both in terms of form – the work came off the wall in order to occupy a three-dimensional space – and material (synthetic fibre, wood, metal or paper). Traditional and popular techniques were rediscovered, while new personal approaches to them were invented.

« Une exposition lausannoise ressuscite l’âge d’or de l’art textile contemporain. »
L. Chauvy. Le Temps 18.07.2000