As part of a group investigation with Great Western Embroiderers over the last year, I have explored and interpreted local photographs held in the archive of Swindon Museum and Art Gallery.
The collection privides a record of the town's history since the beginning of photography that has fascinated and absorbed me. I was particularly drawn to two photographs, shown again at the end of this post. I decided to explore what these revealed about the social class and gender differences of the time and about people's daily lives. I worked digitally on both images as I so often do these days but the work from these two photos evolved towards very different outcomes.
The first photograph showed a street of small row houses, dating from the late 1800s with pronounced chimneys (great for angles and perspective) and lines of washing hanging in the front gardens. I generated a series of eight small images. In each, I manipulated the same initial photograph, selecting, cutting and overlaying images and playing with colour and opacity. I printed the results onto a light weight cotton and stitched with fine running stitches in various ways.
Then I stitched a further seven the same size, this time onto organza. Because of the delicate nature of the fabric, the stitching approach I used was very different. I chose to highlight only a very few features from each image and, although I used running stitch again, both the front and the back of the stitch was visible because of the transparency of the fabric. In reference again to the washing lines, I attached each piece with the help of tiny wooden pegs to a length of cord, looped it and it was tacked to the wall.
The second photograph which particularly intrigued me was from around 1920 and showed men walking home for lunch from Swindon's Great Western Railway site. It featured a man in a bowler hat as he strode up the hill surrounded by the other workers in cloth caps. I felt he represented the status and authority of professional men in the 1920s.
Men walking home for lunch was reimagined as Bowler Hats and Cloth Caps, a lightly quilted piece with some top stitching:
My exploration of class and gender difference then extended to include photos of four streets from the 1920s (here Bridge Street) where I superimposed the figures of men, women and children, cut and pasted from various sources to make a digital photomontage series.
I presented these four pieces as a group and had them framed in the manner of photographs, in a frame, double mounted and behind glass, hence the reflections as they hang in the gallery.
Many recent posts have traced the development of this work. The two particular images that began this exploration were of Railway Village and Dinner Time GWR works, Swindon, photographers sadly unknown though the latter's intitials are given as ETWD.
Both photographs were previously shown here, along with street scenes that I eventually used in the four photomontages.
* Full details of this exhibition in the community galleries of Swindon Museum and Art Gallery are given in the side panel of the blog.
The collection privides a record of the town's history since the beginning of photography that has fascinated and absorbed me. I was particularly drawn to two photographs, shown again at the end of this post. I decided to explore what these revealed about the social class and gender differences of the time and about people's daily lives. I worked digitally on both images as I so often do these days but the work from these two photos evolved towards very different outcomes.
The first photograph showed a street of small row houses, dating from the late 1800s with pronounced chimneys (great for angles and perspective) and lines of washing hanging in the front gardens. I generated a series of eight small images. In each, I manipulated the same initial photograph, selecting, cutting and overlaying images and playing with colour and opacity. I printed the results onto a light weight cotton and stitched with fine running stitches in various ways.
These were then mounted on panels to form the works I entitled Chimneys and Washing Lines. These were hung from a structure made by my husband so that they were suspended away from the wall to reference washing hanging on a line. The gallery lighting produced the shadows I'd hoped for on the wall behind, just as I see when I hang sheets out to dry in the sun.
Details of three of the small pieces are shown here, though sadly the stitching is not as obvious as I would have liked.
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The second photograph which particularly intrigued me was from around 1920 and showed men walking home for lunch from Swindon's Great Western Railway site. It featured a man in a bowler hat as he strode up the hill surrounded by the other workers in cloth caps. I felt he represented the status and authority of professional men in the 1920s.
Men walking home for lunch was reimagined as Bowler Hats and Cloth Caps, a lightly quilted piece with some top stitching:
My exploration of class and gender difference then extended to include photos of four streets from the 1920s (here Bridge Street) where I superimposed the figures of men, women and children, cut and pasted from various sources to make a digital photomontage series.
I presented these four pieces as a group and had them framed in the manner of photographs, in a frame, double mounted and behind glass, hence the reflections as they hang in the gallery.
Both photographs were previously shown here, along with street scenes that I eventually used in the four photomontages.
* Full details of this exhibition in the community galleries of Swindon Museum and Art Gallery are given in the side panel of the blog.
I have found your interpretations and processes most interesting, and the results are looking good. I hope that the reactions from the museum and from the visitors are rewarding.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Olga. It was a very busy but interesting time developing and completing this work. The museum staff (especially the curator, Sophie Cummings) have been most encouraging and supportive and seem very pleased with the outcome. As for the visitors, I have yet to steward and meet any of them, but someone liked one of my smaller pieces enough yesterday to buy it so that can’t be bad!
DeleteOh that IS affirming! Both the reaction of the curator and the sale. :-)
DeleteBrilliant! That is really great.
DeleteThank you both!
DeleteFantastic work, Margaret!! ❤
ReplyDeleteThank you very much, Connie. Yo are very kind and your enthusiasm for my work is always so encouraging. I am sorry that this particular link with the museum has come to an end and suspect that I may want to pursue the approach further at some time.
DeleteOh, to see these in person. I especially would like to see those organza ones, the delicacy of the stitch on them. What a clever way to present them. Probably my favorite would be that Bowler Hats and Cloth Caps, so bold and symmetrical and yet not quite symmetrical. You can just feel them marching up the street and you've better get out of the way.
ReplyDeleteVery many thanks, Sheila. It has been a very interesting challenge to find appropriate ways to interpret the fascinating old photos. As so often, the ideas generated have led to new approaches to printing and stitch. Many people seem to share your feelings about the Bowler Hats piece and the organza especially provoked great restraint- never a bad idea for me!
DeleteHaving followed your early explorations it is good to see your finished pieces and how they hang in the gallery. Bowler Hats and Cloth Caps is a particularly striking piece. xx
ReplyDeleteThank you, Lin, for commenting. As I replied above, I’m hoping for the opportunity to develop some of the ideas featured here still further. It feels as though there is much more to come but time will tell.
Delete