Clark Art Presents A Look at Women of the French Tapestry Revival

11:54AM / Tuesday, February 04, 2025Print Story | Email Story

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — On Saturday, Feb. 8 at 2 pm, the Clark Art Institute presents "Women of the French Tapestry Revival: Artists, Dealers, Weavers," a talk by Kay Wells (University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee).

This free lecture is given in conjunction with the Clark's exhibition "Wall Power! Modern French Tapestry from the Mobilier national, Paris," and takes place in the Clark's Manton Research Center auditorium.

According to a press release:

French tapestry weaving was traditionally an elite luxury craft practiced by men, who passed prestigious weaving positions down from father to son for generations. But as modernists began to revive French tapestry weaving in the twentieth century, women took on increasingly prominent roles in the field as artists, dealers, and weavers. This talk by Kay Wells explores how women worked in these and other roles to produce modern French tapestries, how they carved out new careers in this dramatically changing field, and how they transformed the look and feel of modern art.

Kay Wells serves as Director of Graduate Studies and Associate Professor of American Art and Architecture at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and is the author of "Weaving Modernism: Postwar Tapestry between Paris and New York" (Yale University Press, 2019).

Drawn from the celebrated collection of the Mobilier national from the 1940s to the present day, "Wall Power! Modern French Tapestry from the Mobilier national," Paris explores the resurgence of the ancient French tradition of tapestry-making, including works by Henri Matisse, Sonia Delaunay, and Kiki Smith.

"Wall Power! Modern French Tapestry from the Mobilier national, Paris" is organized by the Clark Art Institute and curated by Kathleen Morris, Sylvia and Leonard Marx Director of Collections and Exhibitions and curator of decorative arts.

Support for this exhibition is provided by George W. Ahl III, the Coby Foundation, and Robert D. Kraus. The exhibition catalogue is made possible by Denise Littlefield Sobel.

Tags: Clark Art,

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Letter: Incomplete Picture from Greylock School Committee

Letter to the Editor06:30PM / Wednesday, October 28, 2026

To the Editor:

At the October Mount Greylock School Committee meeting, there was much celebration over the student growth percentiles (SGP) from last year's MCAS test data (Spring 2026). Growth is worth celebrating. But I worry the meeting, and the coverage of it, left families and our community with an incomplete picture of how our students are doing in math.

"Growth" sounds like it means scores went up, but that isn’t quite what SGP measures. SGP compares each student to students in the state who scored about the same the year before, then ranks how they did this year against that group. If a whole group of similar students decreases, the student who decreases the least can still earn a high growth percentile. A strong SGP tells us our students did better than their peers who scored similarly the year before. It doesn't tell us whether they are at grade level.

For example, the current 6th grade class at Williamstown Elementary School (WES) has decreased in their grade-level math proficiency every year since their 3rd grade MCAS. In 2024, 64 percent of the class was meeting expectations; in 2025 48 percent were at grade level, and in 2026 only 33 percent of their class met grade-level expectations. Our current WES 5th grade class follows a similar trend, with 48 percent meeting grade-level math expectations last year vs 56 percent meeting expectations in 2025 when they were in 3rd grade.

Not every class follows this pattern; our current 7th graders gained to 62 percent last year. But seeing entire classes decrease is something that deserves our attention.

Growth comparisons across the state provide useful information, but they do not tell the complete story. We also need to look at where our students are in terms of grade-level proficiency and how those numbers are changing from year to year within the Mt. Greylock school district. This will be our first year with the math interventionist role filled at WES and our second year with the new i-Ready curriculum.

As we watch whether these changes are working, I hope the School Committee will discuss proficiency alongside growth in its public meetings, so our community can see the full picture. Growth matters, but it isn’t enough if fewer of our kids are reaching grade level each year.

Sincerely,

Jenna Hasenkampf
Williamstown, Mass.

Hasenkampf is a parent of WES students in Grades 2 and 4.

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