Murray Gibson, Jane Kidd and Ann Newdigate: overandunderandoverandunder...

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Murray Gibson, "Procne, Revenge," 2014

woven tapestry

Tapestry by artist-makers rather than artist-designers, is rare in a time of instantaneity and the global outsourcing of skilled labour tasks. One of humanities most ancient creative and technological practices, weaving in some form has existed for at least 12,000 years. The intricate and accomplished tapestry works by Ann Newdigate, Jane Kidd and Murray Gibson in overandunder… raise provocative and pertinent questions about the use of traditional skills, changing perceptions of time, and how tapestry, a seemingly anachronistic practice, is relevant as contemporary art.

Murray Gibson studied tapestry weaving at the Alberta College of Art and Design (ACAD) with Jane Kidd, graduating in 1985. After ten years of studio practice, Murray received his MA Textiles from Goldsmith’s College, London, UK in 1995. In 2015, Murray was named a Master Artisan by Craft Nova Scotia. Murray currently teaches at St Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, NS. Murray’s tapestries have been exhibited across North America, in Poland and Australia. His tapestries – many commissioned – hang in private, public, and corporate collections.

Jane Kidd taught at ACAD from 1980 – 2011 and has exhibited in numerous solo and over sixty group exhibitions in Canada, the USA, Japan, Poland, Hungary and Australia. Kidd’s work is held in private and public collections including Canada Council Art Bank, Department of Foreign Affairs, Alberta Foundation for the Arts, and Canadian Museum of History. She was elected to the Royal Canadian Academy of Art in 2001, awarded the Alberta Craft Council Award of Excellence in 2008, and the Saidye Bronfman Award (Governor General’s Award for Visual and Media Arts, Canada’s foremost distinction for excellence in the visual arts) in 2016.

Ann Newdigate holds a degree in African Studies and English Literature, as well as a BFA from Cape Town University, South Africa. She received her MFA in 1988 from the University of Saskatchewan and completed a post-graduate year in the Tapestry Department of Edinburgh College of Art, Scotland. She has exhibited her work internationally, representing Canada in the Lodz Tapestry Bienniale in Poland, and most recently at Contemporary Calgary in 2017-18. Her work is collected internationally and is held in public collections including the MacKenzie Art Gallery, the Museum of Canadian History and the Massey Foundation.

overandunderandoverandunder… is guest curated by Deborah Forbes, independent curator, artist and art educator.