Stand close to a heritage artwork and it dissolves into thousands of tiny crosses of thread. Step back, and a horse gallops, a garden blooms or a cottage glows in the evening light. The distance between those two views is many hours of work, and it follows a process artisans are trained in step by step.
Cross stitch is one of the oldest forms of embroidery. Each stitch is a small cross worked over the threads of an evenly woven fabric and placed square by square according to a chart. Because every stitch sits on a grid, the finished picture is built one coloured point at a time, and its detail depends on how many stitches the artisan works.
The heritage works in our collections are made by artisans trained through our partner workshops, and each one passes through the same five stages.
First, the image and the blueprint. Every piece begins with an image: an animal, a landscape, a flower, a home. The image is selected and converted into a coded blueprint, a chart that assigns a colour code to every square of the design. This is where the size of the finished work is decided, and with it the number of stitches it will need.
Second, guided stitching. Working from the blueprint, the artisan matches each code to its coloured thread. Organising the threads well matters, because a large work may use many close shades to build up depth, shadow and light.
Third, the stitching itself. This is the heart of the work. The artisan stitches square by square and row by row, keeping the tension even so that the surface lies flat and every cross lies in the same direction. Consistency across thousands of stitches is what separates a fine work from an ordinary one, and it cannot be hurried.
Fourth, washing and finishing. When the stitching is complete, the fabric is washed and prepared, lifting the marks of handling and letting the work lie smooth and square.
Fifth, professional framing. Framing protects the textile and presents it as a finished work of art. Every piece in the collection is professionally framed and ready to hang.
Why time matters. Depending on its size and complexity, a single piece takes anywhere from two weeks to six months. The largest works in our collections, among them The Foundation Of The Herd from Majestic Mane and The Shared Masterpiece from the Botanical Collection, represent months of patient, focused work. That time is part of what you acquire.
More than a technique. For the artisans, the craft is also a livelihood. Our partner workshops work with women, youth, persons with disabilities and individuals in recovery, and the skills learned in their programmes become a source of income and confidence. Each work is one of one and is not reproduced.
Seeing is the best way to understand it. To look at the stitching up close, and to appreciate how much a single work contains, visit the showroom in Upper Hill and ask a curator to arrange a private viewing.