Poking Fun (Session #2 Afternoon)

Learn to create an embroidery sampler that combines text and imagery. The workshop will cover techniques for transferring a design, basic stitches, and tips for designing layout. In addition, we will discuss the history and significance of the sampler including recent iterations and interpretations. No prior sewing or embroidery experience is necessary.

Textiles have been a form of female writing throughout history and myth, and that makes embroidery a potential political act. In Ovid’s Metamorphosis, Philomela weaves a tapestry depicting her rape as a means of seeking revenge against the rapist that has silenced her by cutting out her tongue. Mary Queen of Scots sought to recruit conspirators to regain her throne using encoded messages in the embroidery she smuggled out of exile. Susan B. Anthony’s first pro-suffrage speech was given at a quilting bee. Contemporary embroidery embodies the ways in which cloth signifies the domestic with references to comfort and caregiving. When artists unite text and fiber, their works often explore feminist concerns, adding to the long history of protest art.

Session #1 Morning covers the same material as Session #2 Afternoon. Register for the session that best fits your schedule.

Level: This class is appropriate for adult students at all skill levels.
Dates & Times: Saturday, June 6th, 2pm-4pm
Max. no of students: 8
Instructor: Candace Hicks
Cost: $50 tuition & $5 materials

Members receive a 10% discount off the cost of the workshop, among other benefits.
Click here to join as a Member, then choose the Member rate below.

ABOUT YOUR INSTRUCTOR

A lifelong reader, Candace Hicks collects coincidences from the books she consumes—shared words, themes, and plot elements—and transforms them into books and installations. Her ongoing artist’s book series, Common Threads, investigates the synchronicity of fictional worlds and is held in over 90 collections worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Harvard University. One volume is permanently displayed at the New York Public Library in the Polonsky Collection of Treasures.