The_Simple_Things_-_March_2020

PHOTOGRAPHY:

©CALDERDALE

MUSEUMS

COLLECTION,

HALIFAX;

PAUL

TUCKER

PHOTOGRAPHY;

©CRAFTS

STUDY

CENTRE, UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS; ©THE OLIVE MATTHEWS COLLECTION, CHERTSEY MUSEUM. JOHN CHASE PHOTOGRAPHY; ©COMPTON VERNEY. JAMIE WOODLEY PHOTOGRAPHY; THE ENID MARX ESTATE

“saw t he work t hey were doing in va r ious

schools of embroider y. In each of t hem t hey

have collected many specimens of their beautiful

linen stitchery. ‘Hedebo’ it is called, and they

are reviving work based on these wonderful

old models... If other countries are doing this,

should we not be w ise to do so a lso? ” Th is log ic

underpinned her approach – whenever, and

wherever she taught, she used examples from

her collection as the basis of her lessons. And

to whoever, too – Louisa taught everyone from

Belgian refugees to shell-shocked soldiers.

WINDOW TO ANOTHER WORLD

Edith Durham (1863–1944) had a very different

story. She arrived in the Balkans in 1900, on

a break from caring for her mother, and fell in

love with the people, the places and the customs.

Subsequently, the “grey months” spent in London

were punctuated by yearly travels to the region.

Edith used her collection to try and understand

a different culture better. “It occurred to me that

the vexed question of Balkan politics might be

solved by studying the manners and customs

of each district,” she said. As she travelled, she

made sketches – Edith had studied art – and

meticulous notes. Each object has its own label,

hand-written by Edith. Some knitted red gloves

from Montenegro, for example, are labelled:

“Such as were worn by old men in the winter,

although such elaborate ones were already

becoming uncommon in 1907.” As that label

suggests, it was a region on the cusp of change,

and many such things were lost in the Balkan

Wa rs of 191 2-13, a nd subsequent ly t he Yugoslav

Wa rs in t he 1990s. Tha n ks to Edit h, we ca n

wonder at the exquisite craftsmanship of such

objects as an Albanian gold embroidered Giubba,

now in the collection of Halifax’s Bankfield

Museum (museums.calderdale.gov.uk).

AN EYE FOR A BARGAIN

Likewise, we can look at an item such as the

or nate 19t h-cent ur y silk ‘Spencer ’, once in t he

possession of Olive Matthews, and understand

something about the past. Olive used to buy such

items when they weren’t valued as much more

than fancy dress. She picked up many pieces

from Caledonian Road Market, impressively

committed to never spending more than £5 on

an item. Rather her collection (like so many)

was built on what she loved, and being able

to see worth in it when no one else did. When

she gave her collection to Chertsey Museum

in 1969, it included more t ha n 3,000 items.

RAISING THE STATUS

Of course, collecting is also treated by some

as an investment. Just think of the art market,

where paintings can change hands for mind-

boggling sums. With her commercial London

g a ller y, Lit t le Ga ller y, Mur iel Rose wa s

attempting to create such a market – and a status

• for crafts, particularly to make it a profession
  for women, rather than the idea that it was

LOOKING BACK

Clockwise from

top: Albanian

ladies’ Giubba,

knitted oversocks

with needlework

decoration and

jelek, all collected

by Edith Durham

on her visits to

the Balkans.

Printed cotton by

Barron & Larcher:

two craftswomen

promoted by

Muriel Rose.

Edith

Durham

Muriel

Rose

PHOTOGRAPHY:

©CALDERDALE

MUSEUMS

COLLECTION,

HALIFAX;

PAUL

TUCKER

PHOTOGRAPHY;

©CRAFTS

STUDY

CENTRE, UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS; ©THE OLIVE MATTHEWS COLLECTION, CHERTSEY MUSEUM. JOHN CHASE PHOTOGRAPHY; ©COMPTON VERNEY. JAMIE WOODLEY PHOTOGRAPHY; THE ENID MARX ESTATE

“saw t he work t hey were doing in va r ious

schools of embroider y. In each of t hem t hey

have collected many specimens of their beautiful

linen stitchery. ‘Hedebo’ it is called, and they

are reviving work based on these wonderful

old models... If other countries are doing this,

should we not be w ise to do so a lso? ” Th is log ic

underpinned her approach – whenever, and

wherever she taught, she used examples from

her collection as the basis of her lessons. And

to whoever, too – Louisa taught everyone from

Belgian refugees to shell-shocked soldiers.

WINDOW TO ANOTHER WORLD

Edith Durham (1863–1944) had a very different

story. She arrived in the Balkans in 1900, on

a break from caring for her mother, and fell in

love with the people, the places and the customs.

Subsequently, the “grey months” spent in London

were punctuated by yearly travels to the region.

Edith used her collection to try and understand

a different culture better. “It occurred to me that

the vexed question of Balkan politics might be

solved by studying the manners and customs

of each district,” she said. As she travelled, she

made sketches – Edith had studied art – and

meticulous notes. Each object has its own label,

hand-written by Edith. Some knitted red gloves

from Montenegro, for example, are labelled:

“Such as were worn by old men in the winter,

although such elaborate ones were already

becoming uncommon in 1907.” As that label

suggests, it was a region on the cusp of change,

and many such things were lost in the Balkan

Wa rs of 191 2-13, a nd subsequent ly t he Yugoslav

Wa rs in t he 1990s. Tha n ks to Edit h, we ca n

wonder at the exquisite craftsmanship of such

objects as an Albanian gold embroidered Giubba,

now in the collection of Halifax’s Bankfield

Museum (museums.calderdale.gov.uk).

AN EYE FOR A BARGAIN

Likewise, we can look at an item such as the

or nate 19t h-cent ur y silk ‘Spencer ’, once in t he

possession of Olive Matthews, and understand

something about the past. Olive used to buy such

items when they weren’t valued as much more

than fancy dress. She picked up many pieces

from Caledonian Road Market, impressively

committed to never spending more than £5 on

an item. Rather her collection (like so many)

was built on what she loved, and being able

to see worth in it when no one else did. When

she gave her collection to Chertsey Museum

in 1969, it included more t ha n 3,000 items.

RAISING THE STATUS

Of course, collecting is also treated by some

as an investment. Just think of the art market,

where paintings can change hands for mind-

boggling sums. With her commercial London

g a ller y, Lit t le Ga ller y, Mur iel Rose wa s

attempting to create such a market – and a status

• for crafts, particularly to make it a profession
  for women, rather than the idea that it was

LOOKING BACK

Clockwise from

top: Albanian

ladies’ Giubba,

knitted oversocks

with needlework

decoration and

jelek, all collected

by Edith Durham

on her visits to

the Balkans.

Printed cotton by

Barron & Larcher:

two craftswomen

promoted by

Muriel Rose.

Edith

Durham

Muriel

Rose