Jacobean Embroidery c. 1936

Editor: This is "Jacobean Embroidery," made around 1936. It's a drawing made with colored pencil, likely intended for a textile design. The whole composition feels quite delicate and light. How do you see this piece? Curator: This is an interesting artifact. Considering the stated date, its materiality immediately draws my attention. We are looking at a design for "Jacobean Embroidery" executed in the medium of coloured pencils, watercolor and graphite. What does this suggest? Jacobean Embroidery evokes very specific qualities about labor, and about the materials involved, it is associated with opulence and a certain type of consumer. Editor: So, the choice of colored pencil seems… unusual for a design intending embroidery reproduction, right? Curator: Exactly! It speaks volumes. Why use coloured pencil to plan a textile artwork? One might consider whether this was for design purposes and whether it had another utility: perhaps for the designer's personal enjoyment. It appears to circumvent or at least, delay the laborious, meticulous process typically linked to embroidery. What assumptions do we make about the relationship of art and craft? How might the means of producing an artwork shift our perception? Editor: That's really interesting; it reframes the whole thing for me! I hadn't even considered the labor aspect so directly. Curator: The 'hand' is there, in the drawing itself, but is mediating the anticipated needlework in curious ways. There's a social history embedded in that decision too - access to certain materials, skills, class considerations. Think about the domestic context implied by both the subject matter and the likely 'maker' here. Editor: It sounds like there are several layers in this piece related to choices, making and materiality that inform and give clues to its meaning. Thank you for your insights. Curator: And thank you for providing the opportunity to reconsider traditional divides of artistic disciplines!