I was invited to preview Stitched at Dovecot Studios in Edinburgh on Thursday, and I can’t recommend it enough. If you are interested in embroidery or Scottish history – you’ll definitely enjoy it. Thank you to Dovecot Studios for providing me with free admission to preview the exhibit.
Stitched shares a collection of 80 embroidery pieces created by women and girls between 1720 and 1920. There is a variety of decorative and functional needlework pieces in this collection. You can see a chaise lounge, fireplace covers, table runners, and so much more amongst the displayed pieces. Throughout the exhibit, you learn that these pieces were created by embroiderers from varying social classes throughout time.
One of the reasons that most of these pieces have lasted through time is because many of them were kept in castles. Looking closely at the pieces, you can see how well they have been preserved. It’s astonishing that pieces, some of which were created 300 years ago, have persevered the test of time.
I don’t want to give away too much of what you can find at this exhibit, but I do want to share a few of my favourite pieces.
When you first enter the studio, you see a charming map of Scotland sampler. This piece was embroidered by Anna Forbes Leslie in the 1840s. Looking at this piece reminds me of the first cross stitch artwork I created. A piece I designed at the age of twelve of an ink pot and quill for a school project. Sadly this piece was lost years ago.
One of the most impressive pieces that you can find is a bedcover sewn by Louise Lorimer in 1896. What started as a design sketched by her brother later became a familial collaboration with a central motif of a pelican sacrificing itself to feed its young. I can’t help but admire the intricate nature of this design.
If you’ve ever visited Glasgow, you’ll most likely be familiar with a unique style of art known as Glasgow Style. I’ve always associated this particular style with Charles Rennie Mackintosh, but through this visit, I learned that it was actually a style of art taught at the Glasgow School of Art during the early 1900s. You can see the Glasgow Style roses embroidered by Jane Younger who had attended the school during this time period.
At the end of the collection, you’ll see the gift shop, which is filled with needlework kits and accessories. There are even a couple of tables with projects laid out, ready to have stitches added. I thought this was such a sweet touch to end the viewing with.
I’ve only highlighted a few of the pieces that I saw in this collection of 80 pieces. There are so many more wonderful pieces to experience. If you happen to be visiting Scotland between now and January, I recommend visiting the exhibit to view the intricate nature of these embroidery pieces. Once again, I just want to thank Dovecot Studios for this invite.
Reflecting on my visit to the exhibit, I can’t help but wonder where my embroidery journals will be in 50, 100, or even 250 years from now. Will my 2020 Embroidery Journal be displayed in a gallery as a relic from the COVID-19 pandemic? Will historians try to decode what each of my individual icons represents? I suppose only time will tell.
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