Embroidery art
It becomes more than embellishment as significant attention is given to the design principles rather than just the actual needlework itself. The techniques are drawn from the traditional practice of Japanese silk embroidery and adopts a more disciplined and planned approach to the embroidery and design process, which results in bead embroidery that is meticulous and visually pleasing.Ĭreating an overall emotive mood for the piece is a principle part of the aim. She is committed to passing on the knowledge and skills of these art forms in their best tradition and has developed a program, considered to be a world first, to teach Chinese/Japanese embroidery techniques to the western world. Margaret is among the world leaders in the art of Chinese ‘Su’ embroidery, one of the world’s oldest and most admired embroidery styles and has received teacher accreditation accordingly. Margaret Lee's passion lies in preserving the traditional arts of Japanese embroidery and bead embroidery, both of which have their roots in Chinese embroidery. Nine stunning projects are included ranging from simple beginner designs to a sumptuous evening bag. It's ten bucks and you're good to go.By applying the time-honoured techniques and traditions of Japanese embroidery, beautiful beaded motifs are brought to life. You don't have to commit to buying a big instrument to learn this hobby. “It's a low entry point in terms of cost and materials.
#Embroidery art how to
“It's such an easy medium to learn so I can teach somebody in 10 minutes how to do it,” Shannon says. She will soon be setting off on tour, driving a van across the US, teaching classes in every city she stops in, a project that she hopes will continue into 2021. The artist wants to introduce as many people as possible to the craft, hosting regular “stitch-ups” in and around Chicago. Shannon's practice, in particular, is dedicated to passing on the collaborative, female-led aspect of teaching embroidery to a new generation. With its close ties to sustainability, craftwork is increasingly popular, too, as a way of pushing back against mass-market consumerism, particularly among millennials and Gen Z. The materials are affordable, and the ability to be self-taught, for instance via YouTube tutorials, makes it a remarkably accessible technique. Anyone, after all, can take up embroidery. It's a funny juxtaposition that people love.”īut more than the messages these artists choose to champion, it is the art form itself that is perhaps most political and lends itself most to activism. People really respond to swear words in embroidery. Embroidery Artist Boundary Defying Embroidery by Jaz Mulligan Contemporary Decorative Embroidery by Kathi Smith Modern, Scandi-inspired Plant Embroideries by. “I went home that day and started to embroider ‘Fuck.’ I thought it was so funny because my grandmother taught me how to do this and my grandmother’s house has the sweetest embroideries and now, I’m making these. I didn’t direct it at anybody, but they almost fired me for it,” Sarah explains. “I was in meeting and I said ‘Fuck’ because I was really frustrated. Sarah started by stitching swear words, which feature on her most popular pieces, after getting into trouble for swearing at work. Anything I'm stitching is something that I want to spend time thinking about, whether it's feminism or politics or gun violence. “I use it as a way to give myself time to think about different issues and topics,” she says.
She finds that the act of embroidering itself allows time for reflection. Embroidery not only gives Shannon a tool with which to start conversations online. “My activism is my life so it just made sense that I would be stitching around these topics,” the Chicago native explains.
“Folks associate embroidery in particular with ‘Home Sweet Home' and cats and bunnies and Bible quotes so when strong messages come through that medium, it stops them in their tracks,” explains Shannon Downey, the artist/activist behind In 2017 her “Boys Will Be Boys” piece became a social media rallying cry in response to Harvey Weinstein and #MeToo, and was seen around the world after being shared by celebrities including Emily Ratajkowski, Willow Smith and Zoë Kravitz.Īctivism and embroidery have always gone hand in hand for Shannon, though initially it might seem like a striking juxtaposition.