Les amours jaunes
Material: wool tapestry manufactured by Atelier Tabard in Aubusson, France
Dimensions : 179 x 298 cm, 70 x 117 in
Date: 1950
Edition: Unique piece
Detailed information
Jean Lurçat “Les amours jaunes” Tapestry
A vibrant meditation on passion, transformation, and the natural world, Les Amours Jaunes exemplifies Jean Lurçat’s visionary approach to tapestry. Radiating from a central sun motif — a hallmark of Lurçat’s symbolic language — the composition unfolds in a blaze of golden light, suggestive of emotional intensity and cosmic vitality. The sun’s undulating rays stretch outward like living tendrils, setting the stage for a rich, multi-layered allegory of love.
The inner circle is divided into four quadrants, each with distinct imagery, possibly symbolizing different aspects of “yellow loves” — a poetic term potentially referencing youthful love, jealousy, or even betrayal (a nod to Tristan Corbière’s Les Amours Jaunes, the 1873 poetry collection that might’ve inspired Lurçat). The four quadrants evoke varying dimensions of romantic experience: blooming foliage for growth and abundance; a stylized human face representing the beloved or the artist; an ornate butterfly symbolizing ephemeral beauty and transformation; and a tortoise, a counterpoint of endurance and reflection. Surrounding these are surreal birds and botanical elements, guardians of the emotional world Lurçat maps in his uniquely poetic style. Woven as a singular piece at the historic Atelier Tabard in Aubusson, this tapestry is both a technical and emotional tour de force — a luminous example of mid-century modernism’s embrace of myth, nature, and the human heart.
Detailed information
Jean Lurçat “Les amours jaunes” Tapestry
A vibrant meditation on passion, transformation, and the natural world, Les Amours Jaunes exemplifies Jean Lurçat’s visionary approach to tapestry. Radiating from a central sun motif — a hallmark of Lurçat’s symbolic language — the composition unfolds in a blaze of golden light, suggestive of emotional intensity and cosmic vitality. The sun’s undulating rays stretch outward like living tendrils, setting the stage for a rich, multi-layered allegory of love.
The inner circle is divided into four quadrants, each with distinct imagery, possibly symbolizing different aspects of “yellow loves” — a poetic term potentially referencing youthful love, jealousy, or even betrayal (a nod to Tristan Corbière’s Les Amours Jaunes, the 1873 poetry collection that might’ve inspired Lurçat). The four quadrants evoke varying dimensions of romantic experience: blooming foliage for growth and abundance; a stylized human face representing the beloved or the artist; an ornate butterfly symbolizing ephemeral beauty and transformation; and a tortoise, a counterpoint of endurance and reflection. Surrounding these are surreal birds and botanical elements, guardians of the emotional world Lurçat maps in his uniquely poetic style. Woven as a singular piece at the historic Atelier Tabard in Aubusson, this tapestry is both a technical and emotional tour de force — a luminous example of mid-century modernism’s embrace of myth, nature, and the human heart.
