John Hadwen

Aotearoa New Zealand, b.1952, d.2005

Untitled

  • 1981
  • Tapestry
  • Purchased 1982
  • 1175 x 1630mm
  • 82/16

Using overlapping planes of colour to create a sense of depth, this tapestry suggests a hilly or mountainous landscape. As with all of John Hadwen's work, it reflects his technical skill and emphasises design and colour. He once commented, “A craftsman’s most important contribution to society is his attitude towards his work: a seeing eye, a caring hand, a loving heart, coordinating to produce a work radiating the spirit in which it is formed.”

Hadwen was born in Hastings. A self-taught weaver and loom-maker, he began weaving full-time in 1974, and in 1979 received an Arts Council Study Grant allowing him to spend six months in Europe visiting and observing tapestry studios, galleries, museums and collections. On his return, Hadwen established a tapestry studio in the hill country near Murchison in the South Island, which was one of the first in New Zealand to employ the services of other weavers to complete private and public commissions.