Gill Roberts - The Liverpool 08 Tapestry

The Individual Pieces of the
Tapestry.
The stories behind each piece of work, and what
inspired and prompted them, are shown with each
photograph. As far as possible, these are the word
of the stitchers/designers, and where these were
not available for any reason, I have tried to give a
glimpse as to why these pieces were worked and
included. For the sake of fairness, after the central
panel, each stitcher is listed in alphabetical order,
with their pieces, as we felt this was the best way to
allow a more rounded commentary by those who
had stitched more than one piece and meant we did
not have to repeat the stories of why individuals had
taken part in the project.
The Central Panel
The central panel is slightly different from the two
side panels, as it was originally conceived as having
larger than average pieces that would be completed
by experienced embroiderers’ from the Merseyside
Branch of the Embroiderers’ Guild. This is broadly
what happened, although with some stitchers only
becoming members of the Guild during the course
of the workshops, when they became well and truly
addicted to the project and more ambitious in what
they wished to portray. This panel, as far as its subjects
were concerned, did have planned items. We felt that
at the centre of the piece, there were subjects that
ought to be represented, and so most of the designs
were suggested to the stitchers, but not the actual
layouts themselves that we left to their interpretation.
The Liverpool Tapestry: People, Places and Passions | 15