Mariette Rousseau-Vermette

1926, Trois-Pistoles, Quebec, Canada–2006, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

When Mariette Rousseau-Vermette arrived in Alberta to head the Fibre program at The Banff Centre for the Arts (1979–1985) she was already established internationally as a leading tapestry artist, appearing four times at the influential Tapestry Biennial in Lausanne, Switzerland (1962, 1965, 1967, 1971).

Along with her Canadian contemporaries, she forged a new awareness and appreciation for tapestry—a “Fibre Revolution” that would see textile artists experiment with new materials and push the limits of traditional weaving off of the wall. One of a series of almost monocromatic works, Anne-Marie embodies modernist restraint and quiet contemplation. Similar works were exhibited as part of major 1976 exhibition at the Winnipeg Art Gallery, examples of which are found today in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.