Two trends from these crucial years for textile art are presented in the exhibition. The first concerns the tapestries whose designs were commissioned from important contemporary artists by the National Manufactories at the Gobelins and at Beauvais, continuing a tradition dating back to the creation of these Manufactories in the 17^th century by Colbert. The famous artists asked to contribute include: Geneviève Asse, Pierrette Bloch, Pierre Buraglio, Alexandre Calder, Eduardo Chilida, Sonia Delaunay, Julije Knifer, Le Corbusier, Aurélie Nemours, Gustave Singier, Raoul Ubac, Victor Vasarely and Maria-Elena Vieira Da Silva.

The second trend, known as the New Tapestry movement, emerged during the second half of the 20^th century and came to the public’s attention at the first International Tapestry Biennial in Lausanne in 1962. This current was characterized by revitalized techniques, combining those of traditional European and Indigenous American inspiration with the use of new materials such as sisal, horsehair or synthetic fibres. Driven by leading figures such as Jagoda Buić, Olga de Amaral, Thomas Gleb and Josep Grau-Garriga, the New Tapestry movement also aimed to liberate itself from the surface of the wall through the interaction of materials and volumes. Tapestries went from being two-dimensional, as they had been for centuries, to three-dimensional, with a freedom in the weaving that emancipated itself from traditional techniques.