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ATW weaver matching yarn for ‘Pretty as’ 1982, designed by Richard Larter, woven by Sara Lindsay, Allan Holland, Pamela Joyce & Cheryl Thornton, wool and cotton, 2.850 x 4.753m. Photograph: ATW.
Detail of ‘Pretty as’ 1982, designed by Richard Larter, woven by Sara Lindsay, Allan Holland, Pamela Joyce & Cheryl Thornton, wool and cotton, 2.850 x 4.753m. Photograph: ATW.
‘Pretty as’ 1982, designed by Richard Larter, woven by Sara Lindsay, Allan Holland, Pamela Joyce & Cheryl Thornton, wool and cotton, 2.850 x 4.753m.
ATW weavers working after cutting off ‘Pretty as’ 1982, designed by Richard Larter, woven by Sara Lindsay, Allan Holland, Pamela Joyce & Cheryl Thornton, wool and cotton, 2.850 x 4.753m. Photograph: ATW.

In 1982 four ATW weavers translated Pretty as - designed by prominent Australian artist Richard Larter - into tapestry.

Known for his use of bright colour and a collage-based approach to image production, Larter is classified as one of Australia's few highly recognizable pop artists.

Pretty as is housed in the National Gallery of Australia Collection in Canberra.

Larter has exhibited widely, both nationally and internationally, and is represented by Niagara Galleries, Melbourne.

ATW weaver working on ‘Ring of Grass Trees’ 1978, designed by Robert Juniper, woven by Sara Lindsay & Sue Carstairs, wool and cotton, 1.47 x 2.70m. Photograph: ATW.
ATW weaver working on ‘Ring of Grass Trees’ 1978, designed by Robert Juniper, woven by Sara Lindsay & Sue Carstairs, wool and cotton, 1.47 x 2.70m. Photograph: ATW.
‘Ring of Grass Trees’ 1978, designed by Robert Juniper, woven by Sara Lindsay & Sue Carstairs, wool and cotton, 1.47 x 2.70m. Photograph: ATW.
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Ring of Grass Trees, designed by Robert Juniper AM in 1978, was commissioned by the Friends of the Festival of Perth for Parliament House in Perth, Western Australia.

Juniper (1929 – 2012) was an Australian artist, art teacher, illustrator, printmaker and sculptor.

Juniper’s work is housed in several major Australian collections.

ATW weavers working on ‘Wattle’ 1979, designed by Marie Cook, woven by Marie Cook, Gordon Cameron, Ilona Fornalski, Kathy Hope, Jan Nelson, Cheryl Thornton, Wendy Webb & Irja West, wool and cotton, 3.66 x 6.09m. Photograph: ATW.
ATW weavers working on ‘Wattle’ 1979, designed by Marie Cook, woven by Marie Cook, Gordon Cameron, Ilona Fornalski, Kathy Hope, Jan Nelson, Cheryl Thornton, Wendy Webb & Irja West, wool and cotton, 3.66 x 6.09m. Photograph: ATW.
‘Wattle’ 1979, designed by Marie Cook, woven by Marie Cook, Gordon Cameron, Ilona Fornalski, Kathy Hope, Jan Nelson, Cheryl Thornton, Wendy Webb & Irja West, wool and cotton, 3.66 x 6.09m. Photograph: ATW.
‘Wattle’ 1979, designed by Marie Cook, woven by Marie Cook, Gordon Cameron, Ilona Fornalski, Kathy Hope, Jan Nelson, Cheryl Thornton, Wendy Webb & Irja West, wool and cotton, 3.66 x 6.09m, in situ at the Sofitel Hotel, Melbourne. Photograph: ATW.

Marie Cook designed Wattle in 1979, as a companion piece to Pink Heath, woven in the same year for the Sofitel Hotel in Melbourne.

As oppose to Pink Heath, which was woven on it's side, Wattle was woven horizontally. This allowed more weavers to work on the project and facilitated the decision to purchase a new 8m loom for the Workshop.

Wattle and Pink Heath have remained popular depictions of Australian flora and are still much loved by Melbournians.

Detail of ‘Pink Heath’ 1979, designed by Marie Cook, woven by Marie Cook, Mary Coughlan, Sue Hick, Andrew May & Iain Young, wool and cotton, 3.65 x 6.09m. Photograph: ATW.
ATW weavers working on ‘Pink Heath’ 1979, designed by Marie Cook, woven by Marie Cook, Mary Coughlan, Sue Hick, Andrea May & Iain Young, wool and cotton, 3.65 x 6.09m.
Cutting Off Ceremony for ‘Pink Heath’ 1979, designed by Marie Cook, woven by Marie Cook, Mary Coughlan, Sue Hick, Andrew May & Iain Young, wool and cotton, 3.65 x 6.09m. Photograph: ATW.
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ATW weaver and artist Marie Cook designed Pink Heath specifically for the Sofitel Hotel in 1979.

The choice to weave the tapestry on it's side limited the number of weavers that could work on the piece. Five weavers took nearly one year to complete the tapestry and it was the Workshop's most time-consuming project to date.

Pink Heath was created alongside Cook's Wattle. The Cutting Off Ceremony for Pink Heath in 1980 was a europhic occasion, with all the weavers dressed in pink to match the tapestry.