Sixteenth and seventeenth century portraits are a wonderful resource for lace historians. Two types of lace evolved during the sixteenth century: needle lace and bobbin lace. Needle lace, as the name suggests, is a form of free embroidery, worked with a needle and a single thread, while bobbin lace is a combination of plaiting and […]
On the 20 September ’17, I attended the Depicting Dress workshop run by Prof. Jenny Tiramani and Vanessa Hopkins, teachers at The School of Historical Dress in Lambeth. In late spring when I had read the description of the workshop, I thought it would provide a fantastic development opportunity; a chance to improve my knowledge […]
This collaborative workshop between the Understanding British Portraits professional network and the School of Historical Dress was led by two of the School’s teachers, Professor Jenny Tiramani and Vanessa Hopkins and took place their newly opened headquarters in Lambeth. The day commenced in the extremely well-stocked library, where Jenny and Vanessa provided a brief introduction […]
I had been looking forward to the Understanding British Portraits Study Day at Hardwick Hall from the moment it was announced. Since first encountering ‘Bess of Hardwick’ 12 years ago when I moved to the area I have become something of an enthusiast. Combined with my equally keen interest in 16th and 17th century portraiture, […]
Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal in North Yorkshire is not known for its large collection of art or furniture; it’s a World Heritage Site famous for its landscaped water garden and 12th century monastic ruins. The devastating fire at Studley Royal House in 1946 had destroyed much of the contents and when the Vyner family […]
Marketing staff based at Heelis (National Trust’s head office) are mostly preoccupied with attracting and retaining members, fundraising campaigns and looking after the NT brand. So I am delighted and privileged to be awarded one of the Understanding British Portraits network’s NT staff bursaries this year, and will be sharing my findings with marketing colleagues […]
During my second term as Hon Secretary, when The Lace Guild was working towards museum registration, the Museums’ Association Journal appeared regularly in my pigeon-hole at The Hollies. As with any such journal there were good months and bad months, but in most issues I found plenty of general interest, in addition to specific information […]