Brother Embroidery Format
A Salute to Women Artists
Woman in Veil, Attributed to Emily Eastman (1804-c. 1841), Loudon, New Hampshire, c. 1825, Watercolor and ink on paper, 14 9/16 x 10 5/8″, Collection American Folk Art Museum, New York, Promised gift of Ralph Esmerian, P1.2001.7, Photo © 2000 John Bigelow Taylor, New York
If you are in New York City and looking for ways to stay out of this oppressive summer heat, try to catch the exhibition Women Only: Folk Art by Female Hands on view at the American Folk Art Museum. Approximately 60 objects from the museum’s vast collection illustrate the diverse mediums and wide-range of abilities used by 18th and 19th century women for artistic expression.
According to Stacy Hollander, exhibition curator, “Artmaking activities were primarily the province of male artists, and women’s work operated almost entirely within a separate circle that was admired and judged by female peers and important figures such as teachers and parents. Needle and thread were the traditional tools used to fulfill women’s roles in society; clothing the family, warming and covering the bed, and ornamenting the home.”
But some women were not content to work within that separate circle that Hollander refers. Portrait painting was predominately produced by men but, there are some notable exceptions. Deborah Goldsmith, creator of the family group Mr. and Mrs. Lyman Day and Daughter Cornelia, painted to support herself and her aged parents and Emily Eastman painted this exquisitely delicate watercolor of a woman in a veil.
Mr. and Mrs. Lyman Day and Daughter Cornelia, Deborah Goldsmith (1808-1836), Sangerfield, New York, c. 1823-1824, Watercolor and pencil on paper, 9 x 8 3/4″, Collection American Folk Art Museum, New York, Promised gift of Ralph Esmerian, P1.2001.17, Photo courtesy Sotheby’s, New York
Quilts showcased individuality, according to Hollander, and sometimes made political statements, not always subtle. The unidentified maker of the Cleveland-Hendricks Crazy Quilt used a popular format, the crazy quilt, to make her political sentiments known. She combined political ribbons, portraits of Grover Cleveland and his running mate Thomas A. Hendricks, a strutting rooster-the emblem of the Democratic Party during the 1880s and 1890s, and other ephemera to show her political allegiance.
Cleveland-Hendricks Crazy Quilt, Artist unidentified; initialed “J.F.R.”, United States, 1885ñ1890, Lithographed silk ribbons, silk, and wool with cotton fringe and silk and metallic embroidery, 75 x 77″, Collection American Folk Art Museum, New York, Gift of Margaret Cavigga, 1985.23.3
Hollander also writes, “Women worked with mediums that were culturally acceptable or innovated with unusual materials, such as tinsel and marbledust.”
Tinsel Painting: Jenny Lind, Artist unidentified, United States, c. 1850, Reverse painting and foil on glass and paper collage, 28 1/2 x 24 1/2″ framed, Collection American Folk Art Museum, New York, Gift of Susan and Laurence Lerner, 2009.13.3, Photo © 2006 Andy Duback
Tinsel Painting: Wreath, Birds, and Daguerreotype, Artist unidentified, United States c. 1855 – 1865, Reverse painting and foil on glass and hand-colored photograph in stamped-brass mat, 11 7/8 x 14″, Collection American Folk Art Museum, New York, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Day Krolik Jr., 1979.3.1
Violin, Artist unidentified, Probably New England, c. 1830, Watercolor, pencil, and ink on wood, 23 1/2 x 8 1/8 x 2 3/4″, Collection American Folk Art Museum, New York, Promised gift of Ralph Esmerian, P1.2001.276, Photo © 2000 John Bigelow Taylor, New York
You don’t have to look just to museum exhibitions or to the 18th and 19th centuries to find evidence of girls gone wild. Girls of every decade have bucked trends and followed their artistic passions. In some cases the result of their work is long lost, but evidence of the process survives. This splint basket, found in upstate New York, is filled with cotton and wool rag balls and signed in paint on the handle, “Mrs. L.C. Millard.” With a little digging in genealogical records, much is discovered about Anna Millard. She was born in 1860 in New York and became the wife of Lewis C. Millard. They made their home in Oneonta, Ostsego County at the turn of the century with 2 children, only one who lived to maturity. In the 1910s, Anna and Lewis resided with his parents, hotel proprietors in Oneonta. Both Millards were dead by 1930. Were the wool and cotton strips being saved for a braided rug that was never made? What other objects initially survived, but are now lost, that belonged to Anna Millard and could shed light on her artistic passions?
Mrs. L. C. Millard’s Basket of Rag Balls #134518,
offered by VandM.com dealer Gabriel Gibson Decorative Arts, Clark Day photography
At the turn of the 20th century women were still using their needle to create acceptable works of art. Working within the prescribed limits of female social and cultural life, this artist produced an exquisite drawstring bag in the fashionable arts and crafts style. Many of these bags were produced at home from published patterns as well as purchased from shops here and abroad.
Drawstring Bags #158640 and #158641,
offered by VandM.com dealer Gabriel Gibson Decorative Arts, Valerie Hutnan photography
By the second quarter of the 20th century woman were using traditional methods to create art and actively competing with men. Two Mexican silver designers Ana Nunez de Brillanti, and Bernice Goodspeed were at the top of their field competing for customers alongside Mexican icons William Spratling and the Castillo brothers.
Ana Nunez de Brillanti (marked her work Victoria) opened her workshop in 1940 and operated it until 1978. She designed this set of six shot glasses made of copper with sterling silver overlay figures and engraved with rural scenes of Mexico. Each glass features a different design and the inside is coated with thick silver. All are marked with “Victoria Taxco Mexico 267.”
Shot Glasses #183038, designed by Ana Nunez de Brillanti
offered by VandM.com dealer Hacienda
Bernice Goodspeed produced silver jewelry and wares for almost 30 years. This heavy sterling silver bracelet made up of six concave flower-shaped links is each set with a cabochon amethyst. It is signed with a “B” surrounded by “Taxco Mexico” and marked “Sterling.”
Bracelet #105597, designed by Bernice Goodspeed offered by VandM.com dealer Hacienda
Today’s girls have come a long way from the 19th century world of the maker of the Cleveland-Hendricks quilt. And, like that anonymous artist, some still push the envelope. Donna Radner, bagan her artistic pursuits creating traditional quilts from published patterns in simple color schemes. She quickly grew bored so began experimenting with multiple shapes and colors. Her quilts soon evolved into one-of-a-kind fiber paintings that can be used on a bed or a wall. Where there is passion, girls will find a way to unleash it. Girls gone wild, indeed.
Pieced Quilt with Masks #220397, Donna Radner,
offered by VandM.com dealer Gabriel Gibson Decorative Arts, photographer Mark Gulezian
About the Author
Talis joined VandM.com ( http://vandm.com ) in March of 2009 and is responsible for overseeing the company’s marketing, advertising and business development strategies. Before joining VandM.com, Talis led the account management department at The Creative Directors, Inc., a boutique advertising agency held by VandM’s parent company, EUE/Screen Gems ( http://www.euescreengems.com/ ). As Vice President, he managed new business as well as the company’s retail, financial and pharmaceutical accounts, including Office Depot, Silvercrest Asset Management, Wyeth and Schering-Plough. Prior to The Creative Directors, Talis was at the advertising agencies McCann Erickson New York and Campbell Mithun in Minneapolis, working on accounts such as Weight Watchers, Breyers, Klondike and several other Unilever brands. Talis started his career as a television producer, working on network news shows such as The Today Show, Dateline, CNN, and Good Morning America; reality shows such as Joe Millionaire and Big Brother; sporting events such as the NBA Playoffs and NHL All-Star Game; and documentaries such as Intervention on A&E. Talis received a BS in advertising from the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities. Inside info: Talis climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, ran the NYC Marathon, and can eat fire.
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