Assisi embroidery
Encyclopedia
Assisi embroidery is a form of counted-thread embroidery
based on an ancient Italian tradition where the background is filled with embroidery stitches and the main motifs are left void i.e. unstitched. The name is derived from the Italian town of Assisi
where the modern form of the craft originated.
is used for the background and Blackwork Embroidery
, i.e. Holbein stitch
is then used to outline the motif and create the surrounding decorative scrollwork.
Traditionally, Assisi embroidery was rarely executed in cross-stitch, but most often in long-armed cross-stitch. Examples employing other stitches are also known, such as cross-stitch, Italian cross-stitch and Algerian plait stitch. The colours of thread used were the traditional ones of red, blue, green or gold for the background, and black or brown for the outlines. Traditional motifs were largely heraldic, especially heraldic beasts, and typically featured symmetrically arranged pairs of animals and birds surrounded by ornate filigree borders.
In the oldest pieces, the figures were drawn on the fabric free-hand, surrounded with Holbein stitch and the background was filled as well as possible. For more modern pieces the pattern was constructed carefully on paper, in much the same way as cross-stitch patterns are created. Today Assisi embroidery is nearly always done this way.
By the sixteenth century Assiswork had become more popular and employed a wider range of motifs, many based on Renaissance
imagery of satyrs, demons and ancient mythical creatures.
In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, however, this form of embroidery fell into decline and many of the designs and motifs were lost. It was only at the turn of the 20th century that the practice was revived in the Italian town of Assisi from which this form of embroidery gets its name. In 1902 the 'Laboratorio Ricreativo Festivo Femminile San Francesco di Assisi' was established. The aim of this handicrafts workshop was to revive traditional local handicrafts and provide employment to poor women to supplement their income. This cottage industry flourished and these more modern designs, using the counted thread technique, quickly spread throughout Italy
, Europe
and further abroad.
has evolved. Many different colours and patterns are used for the background, and the motifs are extremely varied. However, the traditional version is still practised in the town of Assisi where one can see the local women sitting in front of their houses and embroidering Assisi work items for the local co-operative embroidery shop.
Counted-thread embroidery
Counted-thread embroidery is any embroidery in which the fabric threads are counted by the embroiderer before inserting the needle into the fabric...
based on an ancient Italian tradition where the background is filled with embroidery stitches and the main motifs are left void i.e. unstitched. The name is derived from the Italian town of Assisi
Assisi
- Churches :* The Basilica of San Francesco d'Assisi is a World Heritage Site. The Franciscan monastery, il Sacro Convento, and the lower and upper church of St Francis were begun immediately after his canonization in 1228, and completed in 1253...
where the modern form of the craft originated.
Description of the technique
Assisi work uses a method known as voiding in which the background is filled in while the motif itself is left blank. Cross-stitchCross-stitch
Cross-stitch is a popular form of counted-thread embroidery in which X-shaped stitches in a tiled, raster-like pattern are used to form a picture. Cross-stitch is often executed on easily countable evenweave fabric called aida cloth. The stitcher counts the threads in each direction so that the...
is used for the background and Blackwork Embroidery
Blackwork Embroidery
Blackwork Embroidery is a form embroidery using black thread. Sometimes it is counted-thread embroidery which is usually stitched on even-weave fabric. Any black thread can be used, but firmly twisted threads give a better look than embroidery floss. Traditionally blackwork is stitched in silk...
, i.e. Holbein stitch
Holbein stitch
Holbein stitch is a simple, reversible line embroidery stitch most commonly used in Blackwork embroidery and Assisi embroidery. The stitch is named after Hans Holbein the Younger , a 16th-century portrait painter best known for his paintings of Henry VIII and his children, almost all of whom are...
is then used to outline the motif and create the surrounding decorative scrollwork.
Traditionally, Assisi embroidery was rarely executed in cross-stitch, but most often in long-armed cross-stitch. Examples employing other stitches are also known, such as cross-stitch, Italian cross-stitch and Algerian plait stitch. The colours of thread used were the traditional ones of red, blue, green or gold for the background, and black or brown for the outlines. Traditional motifs were largely heraldic, especially heraldic beasts, and typically featured symmetrically arranged pairs of animals and birds surrounded by ornate filigree borders.
In the oldest pieces, the figures were drawn on the fabric free-hand, surrounded with Holbein stitch and the background was filled as well as possible. For more modern pieces the pattern was constructed carefully on paper, in much the same way as cross-stitch patterns are created. Today Assisi embroidery is nearly always done this way.
History
Historically, Italy has had a long tradition of bright and colourful embroidery. In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries monastic embroideries developed a simpler style where designs and motifs were voided on fine linen cloth with the outlines and background embroidered in coloured silk. Motifs were strongly influenced by traditional designs of bird or animal pairs surrounded by elaborate scrollwork. These early articles were most often used for religious purposes e.g. altar cloths and chasubles.By the sixteenth century Assiswork had become more popular and employed a wider range of motifs, many based on Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
imagery of satyrs, demons and ancient mythical creatures.
In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, however, this form of embroidery fell into decline and many of the designs and motifs were lost. It was only at the turn of the 20th century that the practice was revived in the Italian town of Assisi from which this form of embroidery gets its name. In 1902 the 'Laboratorio Ricreativo Festivo Femminile San Francesco di Assisi' was established. The aim of this handicrafts workshop was to revive traditional local handicrafts and provide employment to poor women to supplement their income. This cottage industry flourished and these more modern designs, using the counted thread technique, quickly spread throughout Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and further abroad.
Modern Assisiwork
In the last 20 years, a modern version of Assisi embroideryEmbroidery
Embroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins....
has evolved. Many different colours and patterns are used for the background, and the motifs are extremely varied. However, the traditional version is still practised in the town of Assisi where one can see the local women sitting in front of their houses and embroidering Assisi work items for the local co-operative embroidery shop.