Annatextiles VOCABULAR - Embroideries

Stumpwork
In England, after the reformation, embroidery was often seen as a sign of devotion in women. For the puritan mind, a schoolgirl’s sampler symbolised her virtue and piety. The padded embroidery techniques, which were traditionally taught to young girls as early as 1630 and up to the end of the 17^th century, seem to have been particular favourites. The scenes illustrated were taken from the Old Testament and classical mythology, such as Adam and Eve, the sacrifice of Isaac, the judgement of Paris or Ovid’s metamorphoses. Depictions of King Charles the First and his wife Queen Henrietta Maria were very popular, as they were a way for the embroiderer to represent herself and her beloved.

These minutely stitched pieces of handiwork have come down to us as pictures, frames, book covers and motives embossing jewellery boxes or beauty cases. They are stuffed with cotton, flax, tow or wood chips. Hands and faces are sometimes modelled out of wax or bone. The embroideries are also decorated with pearls, gold thread, bits of glass, or even real hair, and may include crocheted or knitted pieces. The scenes and characters are lovingly set in lavish bowers filled with exotic flowers and surrounded by playful pets and wild animals.

The name „Stumpwork“ was given to this style of embroidery in the 19^th century. Its origin is unclear and subject to various interpretations. Maybe it refers to the meaning of „clumsy“ that the term stump implies. After all, in 1913, this technique was disparaged as a hideous travesty of relief sculpture.

Today, these works strike us by their unique naivety, charm and sincerity. They seem to still echo the hopes and dreams about love and life, harboured by the young girls who worked on them with such patience and skilfulness.

Le nom anglais de « Stumpwerk » fut donné à ce type de broderie au XIX^e siècle. Son origine est obscure et sujette à diverses interprétations. Le terme « Stump » renvoie à quelque chose de maladroit et disgracieux, notions auxquelles pourrait se référer ce nom. En effet, en 1913, cette technique fut décriée comme pastiche hideux de la sculpture en relief. De nos jours, c’est plutôt la naïveté, le charme et la sincérité de ces travaux qui sautent aux yeux. Ils se font encore aujourd’hui l’écho des espoirs, des désirs, des rêves de vie et d’amour que nourrissaient les jeunes filles qui mirent tant de patience et d’habileté à les broder.