EXCEPTIONAL AND IMPORTANT AUBUSSON TAPESTRY Signed lower right Tourlière, Michel TOURLIÈRE (1925-2024) Carton de Tourliere Publisher : Atelier Suzanne Goubely in Aubusson Title : L'Ombre des Chevaux L'Ombre des Chevaux (historical reference to the Vendée War and the royalist revolts) Numbered 2/4 Matricule no 245 Bolduc on the back Signed by the artist 225 x 392 cm Woven in wool, low - smooth Work from the second half of the 20th century Very large format and edition tapestry. Very short: 2/4 (very rare) Powerful, abstract, organic, highly constructed decorative composition typical of the Aubusson school, which is much sought after today, creating a dramatic, almost nocturnal atmosphere (motifs made up of tight parallel lines creating a vibration and relief, an almost hypnotic optical effect giving a sensation of pulsation, a dense, almost sonorous visual fabric). The forms evoke stylised faces, human silhouettes and stylised masks like ghostly presences, hence the word Shadow in the title (the work evokes a troubled collective memory, an invisible but felt scene, a world between chaos (very topical with international tensions), history and human traces. This is an emotional evocation, very powerful, very graphic, charged with historical and symbolic tension (the movements of the Chouans were nocturnal, made up of ambushes and concealment in the countryside, hence the idea of the shadow with an invisible presence, a persistent memory and diffuse violence). This is a modern evocation of a 'troubled' past. The work does not seek to narrate, but suggests a diffuse, almost spectral memory in which ambiguous silhouettes emerge, somewhere between human figures and abstract forms. This rare tapestry fully illustrates Tourliere's research into rhythm, material and visual tension in a work with a strong decorative presence. Michel Tourliere was one of the key players in the revival of tapestry in the 20th century. He met Lurcat in 1945 and produced his first tapestry, the Vigneron, in 1946. In 1960, he became professor and director of the École Nationale de Tapisserie in Aubusson, before being appointed director of the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs in Paris in 1970. He has had a dual career as a teacher and artist. Born in Beaune, the son of winegrowers, he is very attached to his native Burgundy. His works can be seen at the Hôtel Dieu in Beaune, the Château de Pommard, the Clos de Vougeot, Aubusson, the Musée Jean Lurcat and the Musée de la Tapisserie Contemporaine in Angers.