La soffitta del tempo perduto: Historical raised embroidery

La soffitta del tempo perduto...

....è là , nella mente e nel sogno, dove è possibile recuperare le speranze e le aspettative, dove volere è potere e tutto diviene possibile, dove la fantasia e la creatività non vengono strangolate dai ritmi di una vita frenetica ed il tempo scorre lentamente, dove la mente vola libera senza restrizioni, dove finalmente si è liberi di essere e ci si può rifugiare e prendere un respiro.

The attic of the lost time....is there, in the mind and dreams, where is possible to recover the hopes and the expectations, where what you want is what you can and everything becomes possible, where fantasy and creativity are not strangled from the rhythms of a phrenetic life and time flows slowly, where the mind flyes free with no restrictions, where finally one is free of being and can refuge in and take a breath.

mercoledì 21 settembre 2011

Historical raised embroidery

I know, I have been away from Blog for a month but was totally focused on an embroidery technique that was all new for me, historical raised embroidery, in modern times also known as Stumpwork.
My interest is on old raised embroidery that was made around 1650 -1700, mostly in England; those masterpieces where always worked on a silk fabric ground and stitched with silk floss, silk bouclè, silk wrapped purls, silk gimps, perlè, gold threads and other hand made threads plus a variety of applied materials like shells, feathers, shisha mirrors, ivory, beads an so on.
The patterns to be stitched where generally a commission design made by a professional person for the ladies who wanted to make theirs personal jewellery boxes or caskets.
The designs are very similiar one to the other and the various elements are repeated in different embroidery, probably because the same hands have made them for different people.
So the main elements are fountain with rocks, castles, lion, insects, figures, fruit trees, sun with clouds, birds, butterflies...
As always research is not easy, books to buy, materials hard to find and new kind of stitches to learn, but finally I'm nearly ready to start my new project.
I choose the lower part of an unfinished frame for a mirror, making little adjustments and adding a different surrounding frame:

Here you can see the images I have selected from old embroideries that I am going to use as models:

The panel will be stitched on heavy Italian ivory silk duchesse, backed with medium weight calico using many of the traditional threads that where used in the past plus gold threads and spangles ; in the next post will show you about, still waiting to receive them.

Another crazy adventure, isn't it ??

Here are some interesting links showing beautiful examples, can't post picture for copyright restrictions:

http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O85016/embroidered-picture-susannah-and-the-elders/
http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O110091/casket/

http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O77559/mirror-frame/
http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O130594/casket/

http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O12599/casket
http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O101337/box-panel/