1843-53. Link
Showing posts with label Inspiration. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Inspiration. Show all posts
Brooch
circa 1400: Perfect. "This heart-shaped brooch with its romantic inscription was given as a token of love. It would have been used to fasten a tunic, gown or cloak. Gold was the most costly of metals, generally used only by royalty and the nobility. It is inscribed and would have formerly been enamelled on the reverse in French, in black letter script, ‘Ourselves and all things at your whim’ ('Nostre et tout ditz a vostre desier'). The design on the front of the brooch, possibly stylised leaves and flowers or feathers, would also have been colourfully enamelled." Link
Quarries
1646: "This panel comprises nine quarries (small diamond-shaped panels) of green tinted glass, each diamond engraved with an inscription. (See Further Information.) They are purported to have been written by Charles I (1600-1649) to his wife Henrietta Maria (1609-1669) on the window of his prison at Carisbrooke Castle on the Isle of Wight, where he was detained in 1646. There is, however, no evidence to support this supposed provenance. The glass is hand blown and extremely thin, qualities compatible with a 17th-century date." Link
Examples of False Principles of Decoration
1852: "This candlestick was included in the display of 'Examples of False Principles of Decoration' held at Marlborough House, Pall Mall in 1853 and described as follows:'No.87 Candlestick in the style of Louis XV
Observations - An example of the extreme faults of this style; symmetrical arrangement being rejected as a principle, and structured form disregarded, the whole appears the result of chance rather than design. The base is formless, confused and too heavy for the stem, which is in turn structurally broken in two places; the socket has no determinate form, and does not correspond to the cup inserted into it; all that is obtained by this sacrifice of structural and ornamental principles, is the mere glitter of metal.'
Henry Cole and other design reformers of the 19th century believed that museums could be 'antidotes to brutality and vice' and could serve to improve people's tastes and morals. The desire to improve the taste of the public was a strong one in this period as a response to the social problems linked with industrialisation and the perceived decline in British standards of manufacturing and design." Link
Pope & Plante
1851: "Stockings were essential items in everyone's wardrobe. The desire to mass-produce knitted hose spurred technological development, starting with the invention of the stocking frame in the late 16th century and the circular frame in the early 19th century.This stocking was almost certainly a special product for the Great Exhibition. An inscription is unusual in a commercially made garment at this date, but it shows the many different shapes and patterns that the company's knitting machines could produce. The words may be adapted from the Bible: 'Be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren...' (1 Pet. 3:8)." Link
This stocking features two colours of silk, a black leg and foot with a white toe and welt. The addition of 'clocks' (patterns worked at the ankle) and decorative patterning in women's stockings was typical in the 19th century.The inclusion of the manufacturer's name and motto in the knitted pattern were special additions for the purpose of the exhibition. Normally the manufacturer was indicated by maker's marks or initials." Link
For Sale: Antique Linen Coverlet
2009: "Here is a lovely antique spread/coverlet for a four-poster bed. Ecru linen and lace. The lace is beautiful. The inserted panels and the edges both measure about 10" wide. It is in wonderful condition... I see no issues with the lace. The linen on the other hand is quite fragile with lots of small areas that are worn thin with some holes. Over all it measures 93" wide and 97" long." Link
Drawing with French Knots
2009: "French knots are a basic element of embroidery that can be strung together to make lines and shapes." Link
Winter Aconite (Eranthis hyemalis)
1977: "This photograph is a print made in 1995 from the original transparency. This was used as an illustration in Roger Phillips's book, The Wild Flowers of Britain, which was published in London by Pan Books in 1977. Phillips pioneered the use of photography for field guides to plants. His own curiosity about plants inspired him to produce the book. He was frustrated with the standard flora or field guide that catalogues plants by family and assumes that the user has some specialist botanical knowledge.As a photographer, Phillips set out ‘to make a book in which the visual is paramount’. He organised the contents in a way that was logical and accessible to those without any special knowledge of botany. In fact, he reverts to much earlier models such as the florilegia (decorative flower books) of the 17th century, and arranges the plants by their season of flowering." Link
Jessie Newbery
1900: "Newbery believed design the most important element in her work. Despite being highly stylised, her patterns are based on her lifelong interest in botany. Each element was reduced to a geometrical, almost abstract, shorthand which helped evolved the Glasgow style." Link
The History of Plants According to Women, Children and Students
1542/2002: "For this suite of prints Borland selected 10 plates from one of the earliest and most important woodcut herbals, Leonhart Fuchs' 'De Historia Stirpium' (History of Plants), published in 1542, and reworked them as etchings. Fuchs' herbal is one of the earliest books on plants which can properly be called scientific, and it was immensely influential in medicine and botany in succeeding decades. His introduction credits the artist and engravers involved in the production of the images, but those who coloured the plates were unidentified women and children. Hand-colouring was skilled work which required careful copying from master copies or from the original watercolours. Crude, uneven or inaccurate colouring could obscure the finely-printed outlines, or misrepresent the species or variety , and thus undermine the usefulness of the image for purposes of identification. It was common practice for print publishers to employ women for this work, but there contributions were never credited.Borland's [2002] publication of these prints reversed the usual hierarchy of credits and recognition - though a number of people were involved in the etching and colouring of the plates, only those undertaking the colouring were paid and credited." Link
Extraordinary Commonplaces
"Commonplace" is a translation of the Latin term locus communis which means "a theme or argument of general application", such as a statement of proverbial wisdom. Scholars have expanded this usage to include any manuscript that collects material along a common theme by an individual. LinkNot a dull or trite book, as the usual sense of ‘commonplace’ would suggest, but a writer's notebook in which interesting ideas and quotations are collected for further reflection and possible future use. Link Whenever they came across a pithy passage, they copied it into a notebook under an appropriate heading, adding observations made in the course of daily life. Link
This is an album of watercolours, sketches and prints by various artists, accompanied by handwritten copies of poems and extracts from letters. Link
Iris Apfel: Rare Bird of Fashion
2008: "Iris Barrel Apfel is one of the most vivacious personalities in the worlds of fashion, textiles, and interior design and has cultivated a personal style that is both witty and exuberantly idiosyncratic. Her originality is typically revealed in her mixing of high and low fashion—Dior haute couture with flea-market finds, Dolce & Gabbana striped leather trousers with a Zuni belt. With remarkable panache and discernment, she combines colors, textures, and patterns without regard to period, provenance, and, ultimately, aesthetic conventions." LinkAmazing collection currently exhibiting here. Exhibition review and interview here.
Mosaic or Honeycomb Quilt
1870: Quilters follow artistic patterns based on tradition and their own inherent skill. This mosaic or honeycomb quilt was an elegant one made of silk and velvet sewn onto a black background. Link
A Gustavian house
1790: 1:48 scale house. Envisioned it as an imaginary Swedish house of the late 18th century, furnished in the so-called Gustavian style. A well-off widow lives here with a maid to look after the house. In the upper-class homes of the 18th century, the kitchen was often placed in a separate house, in order to reduce the risk of fire, so the little extension would be perfect for a kitchen. Link
Jacket
1600 - 1625: Ivory silk and linen with a silver stripe. This is a rare example of an informal woman's jacket from the early 17th century. It would have been worn over a petticoat and stays, with a linen or lace collar and cuffs and a decorative coif. Length 66 cmWidth 134.6 cm (including sleeves). Link
Pin cushion
19th century: Wool needlepoint and velvet pin cushion. Measures 4 1/4" x 3 1/2". Filled with white cotton rags.
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