Space, Sight, and Sound Experiences in Post-Tridentine Flemish Church Tapestries

The artistic medium and ephemeral nature of church tapestries have a major impact on the sensory experience of the liturgy. This paper aims to explore the multi-sensorial effects they produced on space, sight, and sound, by focusing on a corpus of post-Tridentine Flemish tapestries that were used during ceremonies and rituals. On the one hand, their visibility is first conditioned by the very short time during which they are displayed on important Catholic feasts. On the other hand, once exhibited, they had the ability to reconfigure the ecclesial space in various ways according to the viewer’s status and point of view. Apart from the sight, Baroque festivities appeal to all of the senses, through preaching and music, mystery plays, incense, flowers, etc. This paper will therefore address the role played by hangings in this broader experience. They were indeed manipulated and could also change the thermal and acoustic perceptions of the church. Inspired by historical anthropology, this approach will thus highlight the relationship between sight, sound, and tactile interactions with richly woven textiles, shaping the overall experience of the liturgy.