L’arbre de vie (Life tree)
Aubusson tapestry woven in theTabard workshop.
With signed label, n°5/8.
Circa 1970.
Henri Ilhe, who came to the design of tapestry cartoons late on in his career, still managed to produce from 1964 onwards a considerable number (more than 120, all woven by the Tabard workshop) in an urbane style, incorporating birds and butterflies sporting in and around the gnarled branches of trees and bushes.
Should this be taken as an interpretation of the tree of life as a symbol of Creation as mentioned in various religious traditions, or more simply as an allegory for Nature with its budding leaves irrigated by a meandering stream ?
