Hannah Ryggen
Threads of Defiance
- Contents
- Review Quotes
Table of Contents

Contents
Preface
1 The Use of Hands
2 Liberation
3 Ørlandet’s Black Hannah
4 Denunciations
5 Confidences
6 Hardship and Breakthrough
7 Handicraft and Fine Art
8 Picasso and Philomela’s Tongue
9 Weaver’s Revolt
10 Perpetual Motion
11 Shirt of Flame
12 We Are Living on a Star
Afterlife
List of Works
Notes
Bibliography and Sources
Acknowledgments
Illustration Credits
Index
1 The Use of Hands
2 Liberation
3 Ørlandet’s Black Hannah
4 Denunciations
5 Confidences
6 Hardship and Breakthrough
7 Handicraft and Fine Art
8 Picasso and Philomela’s Tongue
9 Weaver’s Revolt
10 Perpetual Motion
11 Shirt of Flame
12 We Are Living on a Star
Afterlife
List of Works
Notes
Bibliography and Sources
Acknowledgments
Illustration Credits
Index
Review Quotes
CHOICE
"The biography extends previous scholarship with narratives around individual tapestries, personal letters and photos, interviews, and newspaper articles. Examination of the artist’s life and times is critical to this book because Ryggen’s weaving is so much an expression of her personal experiences. Ryggen’s deep connection to her family’s Norwegian farm, its animals, and the natural environment guided her art’s subjects and weaving materials of linen and naturally dyed wool. During the turbulent times of the early 20th century, Ryggen remained constant in her belief in art’s social function to reveal the consequences of politics. Because many issues that concerned Ryggen during her lifetime have returned to the international political stage, this is a timely biography of a woman who is once again regarded as a major artist. This is an excellent book for those interested in how artists' lives and times influence their art choices and for young artists interrogating art as social commentary. . . . Summing Up: Essential. All readers."
Frances Morris, Director, Tate Modern
“A fascinating book . . . such a remarkable life and astonishing work, and so relevant in relation to growing recent interest in artists who work with fabric and textiles.”
Marina Warner, Birkbeck College, University of London
“Hannah Ryggen . . . is indeed a remarkable artist and her work is of increasing interest.”
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