by Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood, 23 May 2024
We have just had several groups visiting the TRC to see what the TRC is doing, to look at the current exhibition about Chinese garments and in particular to discuss the role of embroidery, past, present and future. And the reactions were positive, as more and more people are getting interested in embroidery and want to acquire the skills behind this ancient textile form. Not surprisingly, given the extensive nature of the TRC’s embroidery collection, everyone was intrigued, interested and surprised by what is in the archive and collection boxes! There were various request to have this box and that box opened.
Our visitors were also very impressed by the Bloomsbury World Encyclopedia of Embroidery – they had not realised that there are so many different forms of embroidery produced, sometimes for thousands of years, in almost every corner of the world. This is a craft that certainly deserves an eight-volume series.
Given the various reactions we thought we would write an embroidery update. We just finished the final proofs of the fourth volume of the series, which is about embroidery from Scandinavia and Western Europe. It is c. 600 pages in length (the maximum we could have in one volume), with hundreds of colour pictures, black and white illustrations as well as diagrams. Again there are numerous maps and stitch illustrations, drawn by our colleague This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The volume will be published on the 14th November 2024.
We are now working on the fifth volume, which is about embroidery from Eastern Eiurope and beyond, from the Baltic countries to Macedonia and Greece, not forgetting Russia, Turkey, Armenian, Azerbaijan and Georgia, to name just a few countries. We have had offers of help from various people and groups, including Armenian, Bulgarian, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian and Russian embroiderers and historians.
Men's leather belt decorated with embroidery, Romania, late 20th century (TRC 2016.0409).This volume is already proving to be a challenge because for historical, political, social and economic reasons, it is difficult to get all the different embroidery traditions in some sort of order, but we will sort it out – well at least the embroidery, the political situation is another matter.
In addition, although we have a good collection of Hungarian, Romanian and Bulgarian embroidered items, it is clear we are lacking various forms, especially Macedonian, Greek, Russian and Armenian embroidery – and yes this is a gentle hint. The price of copyrighted images from museum collections makes it difficult at times to present good images in the embroidery volumes and indeed elsewhere. All items in the TRC Collection are deliberately open access and we want to keep it this way, but unfortunately many museums have different policies about public access.
Embroidered arpillera from Chile, 2015 (TRC 2015.0401).This morning I had a meeting with two ladies, one from Chile and the other from Argentina, to discuss volume 6, which is about embroidery from the Americas! Both guests very kindly agreed to use their knowledge and connections to help with Latin American embroidery.
There are also rumours that the TRC will be involved in the production, in due course, of an encyclopedia about lace. Not just the bobbin laces, but also the wide variety of needle laces and embroidered laces. We are thinking hard about how to do this, and have found various people willing to help out. We are fortunate to have an extensive lace collection, which is valiantly being sorted and catalogued by TRC student, Olivia Buchan, and a group of bobbin lace makers led by TRC bobbin lace teacher, Gon Homburg. But it will take several years and a lot of help to realise such a volume.
Handmade needle lace sample, Europe, 18th century or earlier (TRC 2024.0596).
Funding
Inevitably we need financial help, more specifically we are looking for funding to cover research costs involved in the following four volumes. We need 10,000 euros for each of volumes 5 (Eastern Europe, to Georgia) and 6 (the Americas) and 15,000 euros for each of volumes 7 and 8 (the two volumes on East and Southeast Asia respectively). If anyone knows of an individual, cultural group or commercial company willing to help with one or more of these volumes, please let me know at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Who knows, maybe your name will be on the front page of this prestigious and international award-winning series!
