Many museums and similar institutions, as well as private collectors, are concerned with The Beautiful, with rare, aesthetically pleasing items that stimulate the delicate feelings of the connoisseur. I have to confess to something that may shock you a little, but the TRC in Leiden does not work with the criteria of ‘The Beautiful’. Instead, we are collecting and studying items that are interesting, namely textiles and garments that reflect technical developments and/or illustrate stories that provide information about past, present and future aspects of social, economic, religious, personal and group identity. And all the many variations that come with this vast concept.
So what has all this to do with a very recent acquisition of the TRC Leiden? Well, it's a Christmas jumper, which is a story in itself. You can hardly describe it as beautiful and aesthetically pleasing. To the contrary, it is, for many of us, simply ugly. But it is meant to be!
A 'wrong', and 'orrible Christmas jumper, the latest addition to the TRC collection (TRC 2020.5178).
The story of the 'wrong' Christmas jumper is that of the wearing, especially by men, of over-the-top jumpers depicting Christmas relating themes, including deer, Christmas trees, decorations, crackers, mince pies, snowflakes, snowmen, and of course, Father Christmas (Santa Claus) in all of his early 20th century cliches of red suit and hat rimmed with white (fur or snow?), black belt and boots, and large white beard. An image that apparently has far more to do with US adverts for Coca-Cola than anything else!
Christmas jumpers appear to originate in the warm, thick jumpers with their rows of geometric designs that were and still are worn in Scandinavia, especially in Norway. They have been popular since at least the 19th century and are closely related to the hand knitted socks of the region (again thick and colourful items). These socks were an important feature of the TRC's exhibition about hand-knitted footwear that was held in 2019. They also form the basis of the knitting museum set up by Annemor Sundbø in Norway (see also the TRC blog on this subject).
Colin Firth and his reindeer jumper, in Bridget Jones's diary (2001).The 1970’s and 1980’s saw a resurgence of winter wear, including those of Scandinavian origins, as more and more people started to take winter holidays and wanted to wear appropriate thick, warm clothing. Gradually these jumpers began to appear in films and on tv’s, but then there was a twist. It has been suggested that it was the reindeer jumper in the 2001 British film Bridget Jone’s Diary with Mark Darcy (played by Colin Firth) that really set off the trend for 'wrong' Christmas jumpers. The image of him wearing his (mother’s?) hand knitted jumper with the cartoon reindeer head hit a note that became a cult in itself and kicked off the spectacular growth of the ‘orrible jumper syndrome.
By the beginning of the 2000’s more and more jumpers were being produced that were deliberately designed to be over the top and to make people groan, as well as bringing a smile to the people seeing the hideous garment. Batteries were added to have flashing reindeer noses, music, and even the jingle of sleigh bells.
But back to the TRC’s Christmas jumper. We have one that is badly printed, rather than hand knitted (hint!), but clearly depicts Santa wearing a Covid-19 face mask! And instead of snowflakes daintily surrounding Santa, there are large, menacing images of the corona virus. A truly bad jumper, but one that will being back many memories of the strange, traumatic year that has been 2020.
Of course you want to read more about the 'wrong' jumpers. Try this article in the Daily Express of November 2016.
Gillian Vogelsang, 23 December 2020.
