Commissioned tapestry artist Robbie LaFleur of Minneapolis delivered a technique talk Saturday morning at Valley Grove Church in Nerstrand. Here LaFleur talks with Lisa Torvik. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
Historical Norwegian tapestries told stories in bright wool yarn. Many featured animals, birds and sacred imagery. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
This winter scene is titled “Pastor Quammen Skis Between Parishes.” This is one of the four commissioned tapestries by Robbie LaFleur. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
When the growing congregation outgrew the stone church built in 1862, they moved into the larger white church built in 1894 at Valley Grove. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
This symbol-filled tapestry tells the common story of early settlers struggling to build farms, lives and families in Minnesota. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
Artist Robbie LaFleur is working on a tapestry of a red fox. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
Rising above the bur oak prairie at Valley Grove is the newer church tower built in 1894. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
Members of the Scandinavian Weavers Study Group traveled to Valley Grove Church in Nerstrand Saturday morning for a textile talk given by commissioned tapestry artist Robbie LaFleur. Those club members in attendance included (from left to right) Lisa Torvik, Nancy Ellison, Melba Granlund, Edi Thorstensson, Karen Holmes, artist Robbie LaFleur, Mandy Pedigo, Patty Johnson, Nancy Ebner, and Ann Hauschild. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
This tapestry is titled "Oak Tree and Animals." Common animals like deers, cows, badgers and rabbits surround the majestic old bur oak tree that stood guard over the churches at Valley Grove until a ferocious 2018 storm toppled it to the ground. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
Margit Johnson talks with others inside the old stone church where the four tapestries hang underneath authentic sconces purchased with funds raised by the Valley Grove Preservation Society. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
A set of four symbol-filled tapestries, made with bright wool yarn, now adorn the limestone walls of the 1862 stone church at Valley Grove, thanks to the authentic artistry of a Norwegian textiles weaver.
Members of the Scandinavian Weavers Study Group traveled to Valley Grove Church in Nerstrand Saturday morning for a textile talk given by commissioned tapestry artist Robbie LaFleur. Those club members in attendance included (from left to right) Lisa Torvik, Nancy Ellison, Melba Granlund, Edi Thorstensson, Karen Holmes, artist Robbie LaFleur, Mandy Pedigo, Patty Johnson, Nancy Ebner, and Ann Hauschild. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
Margit Johnson talks with others inside the old stone church where the four tapestries hang underneath authentic sconces purchased with funds raised by the Valley Grove Preservation Society. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
This winter scene is titled “Pastor Quammen Skis Between Parishes.” This is one of the four commissioned tapestries by Robbie LaFleur. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
Artist Robbie LaFleur said she did a lot of research on the history of the two Valley Grove churches, the adjoining cemetery and the surrounding natural prairie in Nerstrand, but she credits “the most marvelous group of people” who managed the project.
“They were hands-off and trusting when it came to the actual designs and content of my tapestries, but they were responsive, supportive, and generous with their time when I asked for stories and information,” she said. “I have not created commissioned works for public spaces in the past, so its amazing that this experience was so rich and satisfying — and also difficult and challenging.”
This tapestry is titled "Oak Tree and Animals." Common animals like deers, cows, badgers and rabbits surround the majestic old bur oak tree that stood guard over the churches at Valley Grove until a ferocious 2018 storm toppled it to the ground. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
Rising above the bur oak prairie at Valley Grove is the newer church tower built in 1894. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
Minneapolis weaver Robbie LaFleur was commissioned to design and weave four tapestries woven in the traditional Norwegian billedvev style by the Valley Grove Preservation Society, after they had received a $9,500 grant from Partners for Sacred Spaces.
The tapestries illustrate the history of the church, its congregation, and the flora and fauna surrounding Valley Grove. They convey the common struggle farmers faced who were working to build their lives, families, livestock and farms on the untamed land.
When the growing congregation outgrew the stone church built in 1862, they moved into the larger white church built in 1894 at Valley Grove. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
The stories told in the historically-inspired tapestries include popular folk tale motifs of animals, birds, flowers and sacred images of church steeples and gravestones. Three of the four tapestries were finished in time for viewing on Syttende Mai, Norwegian National Day in mid-May.
Artist Robbie LaFleur is working on a tapestry of a red fox. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
Commissioned tapestry artist Robbie LaFleur of Minneapolis delivered a technique talk Saturday morning at Valley Grove Church in Nerstrand. Here LaFleur talks with Lisa Torvik. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
This symbol-filled tapestry tells the common story of early settlers struggling to build farms, lives and families in Minnesota. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
The fourth tapestry, which features a bald eagle, a bluebird, a meadowlark, a shrike, Minnesota’s state flower the showy lady’s slipper and dwarf trout lily, now an endangered species, as well as the clasped hands from a Valley Grove gravestone, was unveiled last weekend. The last tapestry was officially unveiled Saturday at an Open House hosted by Valley Grove Preservation Society board members. Many members of the Scandinavian Weavers Study Group, which is sponsored by the Minnesota Weaver’s Guild, attended the event which included a talk and weaving demonstration and ended with Norwegian desserts. The study group is led by LaFleur and meets monthly from September through May.
Historical Norwegian tapestries told stories in bright wool yarn. Many featured animals, birds and sacred imagery. (Pamela Thompson/southernminn.com)
“For demonstration purposes, I wove a fox tapestry on my portable Norwegian Hagen tapestry loom,” she said. “As a reminder of the Valley Grove project, I decided to weave a small tapestry for myself. I am weaving a fox, along with the word fox in Persian, with some borders taken from historical Norwegian tapestries.”
Learning traditional Norwegian billedvev style
LaFleur learned Norwegian weaving techniques at Valdres Husflidsskole in Fagernes, Norway in 1977.
In 2013, LaFleur became the editor of “The Norwegian Textile Letter,” a publication for fans of Norwegian — and other Scandinavian fiber activities — published since 1994. The articles, which range from informational to scholarly, aim to raise the level of knowledge about historical and contemporary weaving and other textile techniques in Scandinavian countries and highlight related activities in this country, explained LaFleur.
As editor, she has moved the newsletter to a digital format, allowing the publication of many more color photos and world-wide access.
“I hope these pieces will spark a sense of community among those whose families are from the church and from the surrounding region,” said LaFleur.
Pamela Thompson is the associate editor for the Northfield News. Reach her at 507-645-1115 or pamela.thompson@apgsomn.com.
Data included is taken from the Minnesota Department of Health Daily reports. Because all data is preliminary, the change in number of cumulative positive cases and deaths from one day to the next may not equal the newly reported cases or deaths.
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