By Violet Lorish, Florida State University
Hello! My name is Violet Lorish, and I am currently a second-year student at Florida State University studying in the College of Music and College of College of Communication and Information, where I am pursuing dual-degrees, a Bachelor of Arts in Music and a Bachelor of Arts in Media Communication Studies, alongside a minor in Art History.
The art of Hand Embroidery provides a non-linguistic viewpoint into England’s historical practices, politics, and marginalized communities for centuries. Due to the nature of fiber materials utilized by hand embroidery, the art form lends itself to preservation. Studying and classifying the relevance of these pieces is essential to our understanding of historical practice, and linguistic communication adaptations made to suit an illiterate audience. The art form promoted ideal domestic qualities in young women, leading to to be included in the typical household tutor education curriculum. This can be contrasted to the societal use of hand embroidery in public communities which appeared as a signifier of wealth, a medium for political propaganda, and a medium of protest. In times when many people were illiterate the information they received came through embroidery in contexts such as textiles, giving fiber artists a key role in shaping the perception, outlook, and understanding of history.
With the support of the Tyler Center for Global Studies Fellow, I will be traveling the summer to complete artistic research on the hand embroidery practice and its use in England. This study will be mentored by FSU Department of Art History Prof. Stephanie Leitch. During my time abroad I will be studying a variety of embroidered samplers and historical garments as well as completing applied studies of historically significant hand embroidery practices of England, and their historical contextualization in relation to communicative motifs and patterns.
Alongside applied studies of hand embroidery, I will be visiting a variety of museums across London to conduct archival studies and interviews which will supplement my embroidery studies. I plan to visit the Victoria & Albert Museum and archives, as well as the archives at The Royal School of Needlework, the archives at Hand & Lock, the Oxburgh Estate, and the King’s Gallery at Buckingham Palace.
In my applied studies, I will be focusing on the traditional hand embroidery practices of Classical Monogramming and Goldwork. I will be studying these practices under the guidance of tutors at Hand & Lock, as well as Michelle Agnew, a Sculptural Goldwork Specialist and Freeman of the Worshipful Company of Gold and Silvery Wyre Drawers. Under Michelle’s guidance I will complete a Goldwork Sampler, followed by a small Goldwork piece. To culminate these studies we will work through the traditional methods of planning artistic pieces in these practices. To do this we will cover traditional embroidery design methods such as the transfer method of prick and pounce.
From these studies I plan to bring a written culmination of my interview and archive studies in the form of a research poster, which will be presented alongside my embroidered pieces, at the Presidents Showcase of Undergraduate Research Excellence in October. After this summer I hope to continue these studies into my junior year.
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