The History of Blackwork - betcha didn’t know…
The more I embroider, the more I love to learn about where embroidery has come from. The following article added to my embroidery awareness. These designs (and others of the same genre) are available at Initial Impressions - just ask!
| The blackwork that inspires the designs for this week offers us the opportunity to connect with our roots. Almost every culture has produced embroidery evolving from simple stitches like these. Blackwork may be many centuries old, but it is textile art that has been freshened and enlivened by every generation and culture since it was born.
Blackwork is a counted thread method of embroidery that uses straight stitches worked on an “evenweave” fabric. Linen was and still is a first choice for this hand needlework. When we look at the geometric patterns in this thread art today, we can see how every design is built on the squares and diagonals these stitches create.
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| The origin of blackwork designs may be the formal arabesques and geometric patterns developed by the Moors and used in Spain for centuries. The Spanish princess, Katherine of Aragon, brought her love of embroidery and her trousseau with “Spanish work of black silk.” to England in 1501, and as a member of the Royal family, influenced the rise in the popularity of her Spanish, or black, work.
The sleuths among us will find it fun to trace embroidery designs back to their many historical forms. Next time you are in an art museum, pay special attention to the detail recorded by portrait artists as they painted their “royal” or patron subjects in the clothing of their day. You can see how fashions evolve through the ages. |
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| In the hands of the English — courtiers and commoners alike — the geometric embroidery patterns of the 16th century evolved to scrolling, more naturalistic designs. Embroiderers added variations in texture — stitches such as coral, herringbone, plaited braid — herbs and flowers of the Tudor knot garden, animals from Aesop’s Fables, and fantasy animals like the griffin.
To record each new design and pattern she made, an embroiderer would sew them on a sampler that she could roll up and carry in a work bag or take with her to share with friends. Some of these “band samplers” from the 16th and 17 centuries have survived, while embroidery pattern books, first printed in England in 1548, have not faired as well.
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| The popularity of embroidered blackwork is in evidence in the traditions every European country, each culture developing it in their own traditions. In America blue thread was substituted, probably as an influence of the popular Delft tiles from Holland. Eastern European countries favored red thread, and all over the world, variations on blackwork were influenced by local customs and traditions.
During the Stuart and Victorian eras in England, color and shading replaced the stark contrasts of blackwork, and the exuberance of Jacobean embroidery was a powerful influence on fashion everywhere. |
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| It was not until the beginning of the 20th century that blackwork regained popularity. Credit the Arts and Crafts movement in the United States with reviving blackwork among the traditional crafts it fostered. By the 1920s and ’30s pattern books were published and classes were teaching blackwork patterns, still evolving today.
We love the simplicity of the designs, and even as we develop new methods for creating them, we feel the connection to this age-old art form and revel in its charm. |
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Source: Kenny’s Korner, www.embroiderylibrary.com
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