Join us at the Holburne Museum to create an eye-catching canvas and beadwork hand embroidery design inspired by Zandra Rhodes: A Life in Print, an exhibition showcasing a spectacular array of Dame Zandra Rhodes’ vibrant screen-printed garments from the 1960s, 70s and 80s. During the day you will be treated to an expert-led viewing of the exhibition and see the original dress from her ‘Secrets of the Nile’ Collection (Spring/Summer 1987).
Students will be introduced to the hand embroidery techniques of Canvas work and Beadwork. You will spend the morning creating a background of stitches using different coloured stranded cotton and metallic thread, focusing on Tent Stitch, Florentine Stitch and Vertical Milanese Stitch. In the afternoon session you’ll move on to richly embellish their work using a selection of beads, threads and sequins.
All materials will be provided, as will a fully illustrated instruction booklet and scissors and frames to use for the day. It may be useful for students to bring their own sewing kits if they prefer and any aids to magnification and light that they may wish to use. The finished design size will be approximately 9.5 cm x 5 cm. All aspects of the design will be covered during the class and a full instruction booklet will be included in the kit to enable you to complete the design at home.
Zandra Rhodes: A Life in Print
Within the Holburne’s historic Ballroom, this vivid staging celebrates Rhodes as a trailblazer in colour and screen-printed textile design, who completely redefined the role of print in fashion. It highlights Rhodes’ mastery in working with print as a structural influence on garment shape and her skill in harnessing print and colour make garments sing with life on the body.
The display of vintage mannequins, generously loaned by Fashion Museum Bath, will take visitors on a journey through Rhodes’ most iconic prints and the inventive ways she has transformed them into garments.
After earning an MA in Printed Textiles from the Royal College of Art in 1964, Rhodes broke new ground as one of the first designers to marry the craft of screen-printing with fashion design, launching a distinctive career that has spanned 6 decades and continues to evolve today. Establishing her eponymous label in 1969, she has screen-printed and designed over 100 fashion collections. Her bold garments have dressed rockstars and royalty, including Freddie Mercury and Diana, Princess of Wales, and in 2003 she founded London’s Fashion and Textile Museum.
