Cathy's Art Diary

Entertaining online lecture from the British Museum telling the story of the Norman Conquest as it appears on the Bayeux Tapestry. The lecture was given by Michael Lewis and David Musgrove who I have heard a few times now and who have written a book on the tapestry. They are always worth hearing again as they are a good double act. The event came live from the Reading Room shortly before the exhibition opened and there was added excitement as a government emergency alarm went off during it! The began by addressing some of the obvious questions about the work such as who had it made and why and then they took us though the story as it appears on the tapestry, pointing out ambiguities and where it differs from the few written sources. There was a lively question and answer session afterwards which included how much it might have cost, whether the English female embroiders added their own touches, the possible meaning of the borders and how the Normans and the Saxons are delineated...

Excellent clear and fun online lecture from the British Museum introducing the tapestry and the forthcoming exhibition. Curators Michael Lewis and Sue Brunning led us through ideas about how, why and for whom it was made then Lewis took us through a basic outline of the story. I have since done a more detailed dive with him in another lecture. I have heard him talk before and he makes the story come alive. Brunning then explained how they only had one year to prepare the show when an exhibition of this type would usually take about five. She led us through the structure of the exhibition giving a good idea of what to expect when you go. As an exhibition nerd I found details like the fact the display case is the longest ever made fascinating. I have yet to get to the show as I am currently away but have my two free member trips in the diary for my return and I can’t wait!

Wasted installation at the British Museum to anticipate the arrival of the Bayeux Tapestry in September. The work was outside the main entrance to the gallery and consisted of trees and plants typical of East Sussex where the Battle of Hastings happened. They sat on hessian-wrapped rootballs in the colours of the tapestry. The work was designed by Andy Sturgeon. I say wasted as the space was too busy for the work, so it was very hard to see it. It was swamped by tourists and I suspect most of them had no idea that it was a temporary art work. It was such a good idea but it might have been better to place some of the trees in a cordoned off area so you could actually see them. The best area was the flowers along the top of the steps. Closed 2 June 2026