New life for old embroidery

Olá! This week I bring you a very inspiring and simple story about very simple and inspired people. This story begun more than 50 years ago in Paredes de Coura, a municipality in the North of Portugal, Minho Region, near form the frontier with Spain.

All around our country, fifty years ago, unmarried girls prepared their bridal trousseau with their own hands. In this big family living in Paredes de Coura, sisters gathered at night after work to embroider, make lace or spin... The images I show you are from a linen bedsheet embroidered during those late sessions by one of these sisters.

Old embroidery

Reproduction of old embroidery

These girls were not experts... And there were no patterns (riscos as it is said in Traditional Portuguese embroidery) to follow. Paredes de Coura is not a place especially recognized by its embroideries like other municipalities from Minho Region are. So these girls used a pencil and by their own hand traced the motifs without having to respect any rules... only as their hearts dictated. And I believe that's the reason why these motifs are so incredibly naif and beautiful.

Old embroidery

Reproduction of old embroidery

This bedsheet was embroidered with the monograms of the embroiderer and her fiance "B & N". As you can see in the photos, the "old stitching" was not perfect... And I even cannot recognized some stitches... I believe they were guided by instinct instead of being "official" stitches (maybe I did not made myself clear...).

The imperfect stitching, the lack of rules in tracing the patterns and the color choice (green for flowers) in my opinion, make this piece of embroidery absolutely charming, showing what happened late at night in many, many Portuguese homes fifty years ago...

Old embroidery

Reproduction of old embroidery

But this story doesn't end here...

Many years later the artist of the original piece of embroidery made it a gift to her niece, Maria Alice, knowing that she would appreciate it. Besides being a great embroider, Maria Alice belongs to a traditional folklore dancing group (rancho folclórico) and she could use it to recreate traditional costumes.

But Maria Alice came out with better idea... She decided to make a reproduction (or maybe a recreation) of the original embroidery using the same linen of the bed sheet. And she gave the original piece and the recreation to both daughters (her cousins) of the embroiderer from 50 years ago. I believe this was such a surprise for them...

Original and reproduction

This is a very simple story, but I believe that it tells a lot about our (simple) country... And stories like these are the reason why I always say that Portugal is a living museum of embroidery...

Nisa embroiderers and the "enxoval"

Olá! This week I begin talking about Portuguese regional embroiderers with Nisa needlewomen. Nisa embroidery is not one of the most famous in Portugal but is one of my favorites. You can’t imagine how diversified is the work coming from the hands of these women. Embroidery on linen, felt embroidery (the skirts), embroidered shawls, alinhavados and even more... I’ll show you one of these weeks…

I collected some descriptions of Nisa needlewomen and as far as I understood until the second half of XXth century they were still faithful to reality... Since then the role of Portuguese women in society changed a lot and the "enxoval" is no longer an "embroidery inspiration" to Nisa women - "mulheres de Nisa" in Portuguese...

Nisa, a small town nestled in Portugal’s interior, had a unique expression in Portuguese culture, where traditionally, girls from the age of six, would make embroideries working for years to create a bridal trousseau, which would then be sold on the eve of their wedding. With the money made from the sale, the bride would purchase, through her own means, a house for the newlywed couple. (1)

Nisa embroiderer working on alinhavados and wearing traditional costumes hand embroidered, in Museu do Bordado e do Barro

The women of the Nisa districts cultivate the art of perfection. “Cloth sprays” they are called by the marriageable girls who, in the expectation of a future bridegroom, begin early to prepare towels and sheets that later will form a magnificent part of their bridal linen and, on some distant wedding day, will be displayed in all its glory to admitting relations and friends. (2)

Hands of Nisa embroiderer, alinhavados, in Museu do Bordado do Barro

The bride’s bed, called “solemn bed”, was usually adorned with quilts, blankets, sheets and towels, most of the times made by the bride herself. These were something to be proud of, a joy for anyone who visited, and stirred naive jealousy among marriageable young girls. (3)

It seems that many many years ago Nisa embroiderers were inspired by the idea of one day getting married and having a marvelous trousseau that they could sell or keep… In Portuguese we say “enxoval” - a collection of handsewn housewear pieces to be used after one’s wedding (3)…

This tradition does not go on anymore… And Nisa embroiderers are becoming less and less…
However, recently, a famous Portuguese contemporary artist helped give new life to Nisa Embroidery. Joana Vasconcelos roots a great part of her work in Portuguese culture, doing so in an incredibly creative and surprising way… She works with Portuguese artisans and their productions are used in her art. That’s what happened with Nisa embroideries.

Recalling the “enxoval” tradition she has created Enxoval Valquíria - Valkyrie Trousseau, a sculpture 16 meters in length, in collaboration with textile artisans from Nisa. All of the diversity of Nisa embroidery is represented…
Here you'll find a great video on this long sculpture... No difficulties with Portuguese :)

"Enxoval Valquiria" with Nisa embroidery by Joana Vasconcelos, acrib photos

Next Tuesday, Joana Vasconcelos will be the first woman and the youngest contemporary artist to exhibit in Versailles (Paris). We are so proud!!

I end with a beautiful video on Nisa embroiderers and Joana de Vasconcelos - only 2 minutes... An excerpt from a documentary I would love to watch... I do recommend it!!!! No problem with Portuguese, it has English subtitles...