An afternoon of silk with tea

Anna Maria Garthwaite was a designer of woven silk in the eighteenth century who, unusually for a woman of that time, not only ran a successful business, but was famous for her design skills during her own lifetime.  Over eight hundred of her watercolours form part of the Victoria and Albert Museum collection and there are examples of silk fabrics made to her designs in museums around the world.  She was born in 1688, the daughter of the Rev Garthwaite and his wife, in Grantham, Lincolnshire.  She had at least one sister, Mary, who was widowed twice.   Anna Maria went to live with Mary in York in the 1720s, before they relocated to Spitalfields a few years later.  Their house, suitably adorned with a blue plaque, still survives in Princelet Street, Spitalfields, London. Occasionally the house is open to visitors.  I do not know if Mary assisted in the business, but I imagine it was likely.  Anna Maria lived until 1763, (until she was 75), and seems to have remained single.

Anna Maria's designs reflected the 18th century love of flowers and plants, partly explained by the interests of natural philosophers (scientists) of that time.  It was her skill in painting flowers in a naturalistic style that made them so appealing. Flower painting was one of the few subjects open to women artists and I know of two others famous for their botanical paintings who lived about the same time.  One was Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717) - some of her botanical prints are currently on display at an exhibition on gardens at the Queen's Gallery.  The other was Elizabeth Blackwell (1707-1758) whose drawings were published as  "The Curious Herbal".  What also connects these three women is that they all lived relatively independent lives, both socially and economically and it seems a shame they are not better known.  

Anna Maria was not only artistically gifted but technically skilled.  One of her great innovations was the design of point papers, known as Garthwaite papers, that assisted in the transfer of a painted design to something that could be woven.  They also suggest she knew how to weave.

This was just one of the fascinating insights I learnt when I went to a talk at the Warner Textile Archive in Braintree, Essex last Saturday. The afternoon started with Mary Schoeser, textile historian and President of the Textile Society, who talked about the Spitalfields silk industry and its links with Warners and Braintree.  As I have silk weaving ancestors it also gave me an insight into my own family history.  After the talk we were shown treasures from the archive by archivist, Kate Wigley. Both Kate and Mary were very generous with their knowledge and we had discussions on a range of connected topics throughout the day.   The day finished with a beautiful tea laid on by the archive staff.  It was a day very well organised by the team at Braintree.

The Warner Textile Archive exhibition area is normally open Wednesdays and the first Saturday of each month, and they have a regularly changing exhibition programme.  Researchers and groups can arrange visits and talks and I would highly recommend it as a place to visit.  They also run regular workshops so it is worth signing up for the newsletter.

For more tales of Spitalfields - I also recommend another blog Spitalfields Life.

Hand & Lock - a textile tardis with 007 on board!

This week I went on a visit to the atelier, Hand & Lock.  Like Dr Who's tardis, the building itself seemed much bigger on the inside than it appeared on the outside (mainly because of the scope of work created within its walls) and we were constantly shifting between the past and the future. We were also given an insight into the secret side of embroidery, which is the 007 component of this blog title.

We were shown around by their excellent Communications Manager, Robert who started with a brief history of the company from its early beginnings as the shop of Mr Hand, who specialised in military work, and who was later joined with Mr Lock, whose specialisation was in fashion. The company now designs and creates work as varied as monogrammed shirts, military badges, items for royalty, pieces for West End Shows as well as unique pieces for artists and the world of haute couture. 

The whole building was bursting to the seams (excuse the pun) with badges and insignia (mainly military) kept ready for dispatch, along with braids and other supplies any self-respecting general or peer of the realm might require. One of their star items is a set of body guard's epaulettes almost ready for the next coronation - they just require the addition of the appropriate insignia which cannot be designed until the next sovereign is known.  It was an interesting reminder of how such occasions have to be planned even though the full preparations might not be needed for decades.

As well as the traditional pieces that Hand & Lock are involved a large part of their output is very contemporary including bespoke embroidery for fashion runway shows - London Fashion Week is one of their busiest times. Skill is obviously important but secrecy is also of the essence. Sometimes the company itself does not know where their designs are going to be used - it can be years later when they spot something and find out its true destination.  

For me one of the highlights of the tour was learning about the development of a design.  Usually starting with pencil and paper, although computers can also be used in designing or, attached to the appropriate machine, stitching.  All the designs start as an annotated drawing marked with techniques required, colour and the direction of stitch etc. In order to explain one of the ways designs are transferred to fabric, we were given a demonstration of a traditional technique - prick and pounce.  A simple leaf design was used to show the development from sketch to a stunning sampler of techniques in gold work and silk shading.

Head Designer, Scott then explained a little more about the techniques of gold work.  He also showed how looking at the back of a piece of work is the best way of understanding how it was created. This cuff was used to demonstrate a range of techniques including elements at different heights and different materials to create contrasts in the design.

Not surprisingly one of the most rewarding aspects of Scott's job is seeing something drawn on paper appearing in the news or in the fashion press.  One such example was a piece of work used in the chair on the royal barge (Gloriana) as part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations.  

This led on to learning how traditional techniques can also be used in contemporary art and fashion. Individual pieces currently in production have to be kept secret but one recent work we could look at was a piece commissioned for the artist Samantha Roddick who commissioned embroidered work for inclusion in her photographic work - "Hidden Within", an exploration of the objectification of women.

We completed the day with a mention of their workshops and their annual competition that encourages expertise in hand embroidery.  The competition provides a platform to display the range of talent and skill of individual artists.  Another way of promoting contemporary embroidery is in their use of a window display to showcase textile art and something worth looking out for if you are in the area of Margaret Street, London.

Look - Don't Touch!

One of the reasons I wanted to see Barbara Hepworth: Sculpture for a Modern World exhibition at Tate Britain, was because the website stated it included some of her "rarely seen textiles" alongside sculptures and other artworks.  I have to say the textile component of the exhibition was limited and I cannot now remember much about them.  Luckily I was not disappointed with the sculpture that was the "main event".  I think the textiles were just to show that like many artists, Hepworth worked in a variety of mediums partly to try out new ideas, but perhaps also because it was commercially viable. 

What the exhibition did highlight to me, was that Hepworth's sculptures do share something in common with textiles - the tactile nature of her work.  As anyone who has ever visited a textile art or embroidery exhibition knows it is the desire to touch that is the most difficult to control and much of Hepworth's work has the same effect.

I have read a few reviews complaining that the works were in perspex - to be honest I am not sure how the Tate would have managed to control everyone coming in and stroking the work if they hadn't.  For me I think this "untouchability" adds to the appeal - something you would like to touch but you can't. I know Hepworth herself wanted people to be able to touch and it is one of the reasons much of her work is in public spaces.  For this exhibition, I quite liked the experience of knowing you can only imagine the smoothness of the wood, the coolness of the stone, etc.  

There was another "textile" element to the work - the threads (or strings) that appear in some of her sculptures - like huge stitches, as if they are pulling the pieces of work together and creating a tension. They reminded me of strings on a musical instrument - would they make a sound if you could touch them?  Within the major exhibition there was the normal "no photography" rule, but luckily a piece from the permanent collection was on display, and also had these strings.

It seems galleries generally have been thinking about the idea of whether seeing painted artworks is enough for visitors. There seems a particular interest in exploring how to engage all the senses with art primarily created to be visual. Earlier in the year I visited (and blogged about) the Soundscape exhibition at the National Gallery but now Tate Britain has its own Sensorium, which had not opened when I went to the Hepworth show.  Unfortunately the nature of this show means that it is not an exhibition you can guarantee entry, but I am intrigued to know if eating a chocolate or smelling a scent and at the same time looking at a specific artwork will alter the experience.

Is it just a gimmick or will the scientific data the collaborators are collecting tell us something new about art as they hope it will? The Tate website also provides a list of other works which, in the traditional sense refer to the senses, but leave it to the viewer to imagine the sound, taste, smell or texture.  There are many historic artworks where the five senses are alluded to, not always obvious to someone who has not studied art history so perhaps these novel approaches are just what are needed to make people look more closely and more importantly think about the work on display.


Soundscape at the National Gallery has now closed.
Barbara Hepworth: Sculpture for a Modern World continues at Tate Britain until 25 October 2015 (see website for admission fees, etc).
Tate Sensorium is on until 20 September 2015 - free but entry restricted, tickets available on arrival at 10am and 2pm.

Missing the small things

Have you ever been to an exhibition where you thought you had seen everything only to find, on talking to someone else, you missed something interesting? If only there was enough time (or funds) to visit exhibitions several times over. 

Over the summer I have been volunteering at the Foundling Museum in London on a regular basis and one of my jobs was stewarding in the galleries. Answering visitors' questions is one way of seeing objects from another person's viewpoint. Stewarding also means seeing the displays and exhibitions repeatedly over several weeks.  Temporary exhibitions are another way of "revisiting" objects you thought you knew.

One of the current exhibitions at the Foundling Museum is 26 Pairs of Eyes.  Twenty six writers were invited to look at twenty six objects and create a response using 62 words (a sestude).  The items they wrote about were not chosen by the individuals themselves, but "pulled out of a hat".  The writers had no control over what they had to write about.  

One of the items chosen was a textile one - a foundling boy's uniform.

It is part of the permanent display, that also includes one of the girl's outfits - both uniforms hardly changed from designs (allegedly by William Hogarth) of the 18th century and continued to be used in the 19th and 20th centuries.

The sestudes are spread throughout the museum, and printed on yellow card making them relatively easy to find - though there is an element of a "treasure hunt" in finding them all.  When you find one you have to stop and look at the object, looking to see what the writer saw.  What did the writer notice that I had missed? 

There are plenty of questions that might come to mind when looking at the uniforms.  Who might have worn them?   Who made them?  Who decided when you needed a new one?  Were they warm in winter; too hot in summer?  Were they scratchy or soft?  How did the children feel all dressed the same?

The sestudes allow you an insight into what the writers noticed and the 26 Pairs of Eyes blog gives an extra back story to their thinking.  Maeve O'Sullivan, who was picked to write about the boy's uniform, was initially fascinated by the buttons of the boy's uniform.  This led her on a thread of thinking to other ideas about childhood and identity both in the past and present.  She thought about the hospital and how it gave the children who came there a better chance than those who coped with poverty.  She thought about how the children themselves thought of their lives and how we live ours. 

Just one object led to all these thoughts.

26 Pairs of Eyes continues at the Foundling Museum until 25 October 2015.

Weaving a narrative - a portrait of every-woman (or man)?

When I knew I was visiting the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy in London last weekend, there was one work I knew I wanted to see - Grayson's Perry's Julie and Rob tapestry.  Last summer I was lucky enough to spend quite a bit of time at the Foundling Museum when the exhibition Progress was on, which included Perry's The Vanity of Small Differences (2012).  That set of tapestries followed the progress of Tim Rakewell, in a parody of William Hogarth's Tom Rakewell (Rakes Progress) - both "rag to riches" stories, that end with the protagonist having a rather untimely death. They were both portraits of a fictional life with a moral tale and both contemporary of their time.

At the time of Progress, I had spent the previous year studying Exploring Art and Visual Culture (A226) with the Open University.  It was the perfect timing to understand the art history references and symbolism that Perry includes in his contemporary narratives.  What I particularly noticed about Perry's work is that although you can enjoy it on a simple level with its bold images and contemporary references, there are always symbols and layers of meaning to discover - some humorous, some thought provoking.  

This Summer Exhibition piece is part of a body of work that tells the story of the fictional Julie Cope. Part "shrine", part holiday home, Perry had been commissioned to design a house, now built in Wrabness in Essex, and this is perhaps the most well known part of his homage to the "every-women" in Essex.   Despite being a native of Essex myself, "Julie" is not a character I fully identify with, but perhaps that is the point - there is no typical "Essex woman" (or man).  Anyway can a portrait ever tell the whole story of someone?

Julie's identity bracelet did resonate as I had a similar bracelet when I was in my teens/twenties - did my charms say something about me then?  I also wondered about the flowers - did they symbolise some personal aspect of Julie or her life?  What about the tear welling up in Rob's eye - what did that imply? The fictional Julie died, (as symbolised by the pizza delivery bike that is part of the display in the Wrabness house), but unless this Rob had some foreknowledge of her demise surely this image was supposed to be a portrayal of a couple in happier days.  Is he raising his glass or drowning his sorrows?  

Julie and Rob also reminded me of another of Perry's exhibitions which had as its main theme identity through portraiture (personal, regional, national) - the Who Are You? exhibition, which I visited in February this year at the National Portrait Gallery, London.  Not only did it examine a whole range of British identities (mainly in the medium of textiles or ceramics) but the work also questioned how we view different individuals and groups - by their appearance, by their gender, by their disability, by their religion, their lifestyle or home town. Can anyone really be identified by these things and does our identity change in different circumstances depending on who we are with and where we are at the time?  

I have found all these explorations of identity fascinating and Perry's work always challenges my thinking - opening my eyes to lives I might not have thought about before.  I think one of Perry's greatest skills is how he communicates his ideas - using contemporary themes and media we are all familiar with (ceramics and textiles, and often an accompanying TV show), his work is certainly accessible to every-woman and every-man.  And perhaps that it why his work appeals to so many - you certainly do not need to understand art history to enjoy his work, but it does give another layer of meaning.

Sewing in the Summer

On the very last weekend of the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy, I managed to catch the show.  It is an exhibition that can sometimes be overwhelming - just because of the number of pieces on display all vying for attention.  It is impossible to take in everything.  I went this year with friends and was glad I did. 

One of the first pieces we saw as we entered the Central Hall was Blood of Sweat by El Anatsui Hon RA - a large work of "stitched" aluminium, using copper wire.  I love the way that this artist creates his soft, shimmering textile-like works.  Aesthetically intriguing you are drawn in to find bits and pieces of discarded metal and wire.  If there was time to look properly, there would be a much deeper message than an object of beauty made from detritus.

The exhibition is always a combination of serious work alongside images that make you smile.  One section of wall contained work by celebrity artists Harry Hill (the image of Damien Hirst) and Una Stubbs (Grayson and Measles) both below an image of a smiling Simon Cowell (by Jean Samtula). However the image that particularly appealed to me here was that of Smuggler by Kate Barlow - the budgerigar in the top left corner.  I liked the simplicity of the design, and had not realised initially that it was hand embroidered.  Kate is a student of the Royal School of Needlework, and I was glad I picked it out first for its design, before then being wowed by the silk shading technique.  According to the RSN website it took 140 hours to complete.  It was good to see a traditional embroidery considered an artwork by the Royal Academy.

There were other textiles on display, including a machine embroidered piece (so high up I could not see any detail), a tapestry by Grayson Perry, a cilice (hair shirt) literally made of the artist's hair and a sculptural piece that came out from the wall (One-to-One by Lisa Milroy RA) that used hand printed fabric.  

Nice as it was to see some textiles, there were many other works I found interesting.  One I particularly liked was a work by Sir Anish Kapoor RA Untitled - unfortunately the photograph does not do this piece justice.

There were several paintings, prints. architectural designs, sculptures and other works that I enjoyed. I think the trick with the RA Summer Exhibition is not to try and take in too much, but to wander slowly looking for pieces that catch your attention and then think why.  Even better is if you can go with friends to talk about what you like, what is interesting and what you don't care for.  Sometimes seeing someone else's viewpoint helps change your opinion - which is no bad thing either.

Bags of Treasure, Hope and Friendship

As a change from writing about exhibitions I have visited, I thought today I would write a little bit about my own work that has been part of the E.A.S.T (East Anglian Stitch Textiles) exhibition Between the Lines.  The exhibition, which was launched in 2014, and has at least one further airing in 2016, was a response to the commemoration of WW1.  Not unusually for me, I looked at the role of women during the war.

My research led me to a project I had not heard of previously, that of the Lady Smith-Dorrien Hospital Bag Fund.  Personnel coming into the hospitals and clearing stations were losing their personal belongings as well as their military papers and when Lady Smith-Dorrien (1881-1951) heard about this she created a practical solution by supplying every casualty with a small drawstring bag.

What particularly interested me was the reaction of the men when on receiving a plain calico bag, whilst another received a patterned one.  As the Times reported in 1917, one wounded man grumbled because his companion had a flowered bag, "...a bag with roses on it", but was then placated when he was offered an even more brilliantly coloured one (The Times (Issue 41568), 28 August 1917, p.9).  It made all the difference to have something that not only reminded them of the comfort of home, but was also "cheering after the drabness of khaki everywhere".

It was not just the recipients who enjoyed pattern and colour on the bags - the same report from The Times tells of elderly ladies who could not help themselves but embroider the bags. Individualisation was their way of expressing their shared humanity and in a way sending a message between strangers who although might never meet were joined by a cause to survive and beat the enemy.

During my research I also looked into some of the items that might have been kept in the bags - letters, postcards, bibles, good luck charms, a tiny teddy.  Stuck away from home, cold, frightened, bored for long periods - such things might have been the only bit of joy in what must have been a living hell.

I also looked at two other women whose work helped the war effort - Lena Ashwell and Maud Grieve.  Lena Ashwell (1872-1957) was a British actress and manager who organised companies of actors, singers and entertainers to France.  She wrote how she was pleased to see the enthusiasm ordinary soldiers had for high culture, such as Shakespeare.  Maud Grieve (1858-1951) organised the publishing of pamphlets on the subject of herb cultivation and use - later published as A Modern Herbal.  With pharmaceutical supplies limited both at home and on the front, the lost art of herbal medicine became popular again.

The bags I made were created to the pattern as described in The Times, and each one was made of either plain or part plain/part patterned fabric.  Each of the patterned bags has a piece of Shakespeare that relates to a herb, and this herb is then also embroidered on the bag.  The bags were strung together like a production line when on display, and nestled among them a tiny teddy which I had started to make many years ago, but never finished until now.

Details of Between the Lines next airing in 2016 will be available on the E.A.S.T website in due course.