Our concept was conceived following a visit to the Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza designed by Andrea Palladio, that houses Vincenzo Scamozzi’s trompe l’oeil street scenes. The design is renowned for creating the exaggerated perspective from each of Palladio’s grand portals.

The proposal refers to our own exchange between Italy and Australia.  A series of imagined sets have been created that reverse Scamozzi’s inverted perspectives, forming a series of picture planes drawn toward the audience.

Each multiplies shifting perspectives across one wall whilst allowing another to exaggerate the proportions of the space. The partial views and transmissions of light within each inverted chamber suggest a place that is ‘elsewhere’.

A complete lack of knowledge of the process of making a tapestry assisted us in designing our entry. Had we known more, we may have, in the intense process of developing our proposal, become overwhelmed by the technical skills and artistry of making that which we now know more about.

In the proposal we suggested fine pixels that we hoped translated our ideas into the weft and warp of the tapestry weaver’s fine craft.

The following year the tapestry was commissioned and the colour fields that formed our composition took shape. Countless decisions on this very particular construction process had to be been made. As the work emerged upwards from its base, many conversations were recorded between ourselves and the weavers and staff of the ATW. We learnt a lot and trust the weavers were somewhat entertained during the process of our further education.

“We thought, maybe we could combine what we do as architects – space-making and the  performance of space – and see if we could project that into a form that could be made into a tapestry. The one thing that we deal with that tapestries invariably don’t is perspective” - John Wardle.