The Springtime Violin
Aubusson tapestry woven by the Atelier Pinton.
With his bolduc Signed, n°2/6.
1956.
Painter and engraver, Lucien Coutaud also worked for the theatre with Dullin and Barrault: he then created numerous sets and costumes. But it was his meeting with Marie Cuttoli in 1933 that led him to tapestry: she then commissioned him especially to produce seating Cartoons. Most of the following tapestries were Woven at Pinton for the Compagnie des Arts Français, which aimed to integrate tapestry into the interior setting. The artist’s last three tapestries, in 1960, testify to his renown, since “Jardins exotiques” adorned the lounge of Première Classe on the “France”.
The qualities of a scenographer influenced by surrealism are reflected in Coutaud’s Woven work: his world is figurative, but stylized (the forms are sharp and slashed), resolutely dreamlike, with unusual borders that are very often teeming.
There is a close link between music and dreamlike imagery in Coutaud’s universe: he conceived musical still lifes in which the instruments come to life (cf. “harpe marine”), emphasized by exuberant borders full of eccentricity.
Bibliography:
Cat. Exp. Lucien Coutaud, œuvre tissé, Aubusson, Musée Départemental de la Tapisserie, 1988-1989, illustrée p.50
