HOME ECONOMICS: 150 years of Canadian Hooked Rugs

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"Hooked rug with beaver, Canada," c. 1940

Textile Museum of Canada.

Exhibition opening: January 26, 2017 at 5-8pm

HOME ECONOMICS: 150 years of Canadian Hooked Rugs explores the evolution, creative and social dimensions of hooked rugs, a uniquely Canadian folk art. For over 150 years, as long as Canada is old, the craft and commerce of rug hooking has been an intimate part of the lives of many Canadians. A form of personal artistic expression, reuse and recycling, as well as a means of earning a livelihood, hooked rugs are widely recognizable expressions of community and regional identity in Canada.

HOME ECONOMICS focuses on the iconic images, stories and communities reflected in rug hooking traditions. It draws on the rich material archives of the Textile Museum of Canada as well as public and private collections. It explores Canadian history through the development of rug hooking in Canada with a range of real-life narratives and anecdotes. While the exhibition includes many historic examples, dating from the late 19th and early 20th C, it also examines the active revival of rug hooking by contemporary national guilds and independent artists.

Home Economics is made possible through the lead support of the William R. and Shirley Beatty Charitable Foundation. The exhibition tour is supported by the Museum Assistance Program of the Department of Canadian Heritage. The full colour exhibition catalogue is made possible through the support of Carole and Howard Tanenbaum.

Organized and circulated by the Textile Museum of Canada. Curated by Shauna McCabe, Natalia Nekrassova, Sarah Quinton and Roxane Shaughnessy.