Impossibly Intricate Embroideries
January 19, 2017 11:19 AM   Subscribe

"New Impossibly Intricate Embroideries by Chloe Giordano" Colossal: "We continue to be enthralled by the work of Chloe Giordano [...] who produces everything from tiny coin-sized depictions of woodland creatures to entire book covers typography and all. The Oxford-based illustrator is entirely self-taught, learning her craft “through a lot of trying things out and messing them up.” Each piece is deeply connected to her pencil drawings, as she works out many of the details on paper before turning to thread. Giordano frequently fields questions on her Tumblr and you can follow more of her progress on Instagram."

A 2.5-year old previously -- this is new work.
posted by Celsius1414 (35 comments total) 56 users marked this as a favorite
 
More respect for "womens' crafts", yes please!
posted by FirstMateKate at 11:32 AM on January 19, 2017 [8 favorites]


I just finished Watership Down for the first time a week ago. The rabbit themes especially resonate for me. The textures in these are amazing!
posted by meinvt at 11:37 AM on January 19, 2017 [1 favorite]


Wow, that is just amazing work. And so much of it is so teeny!
posted by xingcat at 11:53 AM on January 19, 2017


I am in awe of her ability to capture the physical structures of her animal subjects so well in such tiny form. Her attention to detail in her work is amazing. Thank you, Celsius1414--this is a welcome infusion of spring spirit on a rainy winter day!
posted by Silverstone at 12:11 PM on January 19, 2017 [3 favorites]


From the "Also" links on that page: Colorful Spider Embroideries by Adam Pritchett 😍
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 12:15 PM on January 19, 2017 [3 favorites]


These are just wonderful.
posted by SisterHavana at 12:25 PM on January 19, 2017


Came to mention my pleasure in seeing more examples of "womencraft" rightly celebrated, but was beaten to the punch. So much of the standard history of art is, essentially, the history of male thought and perspective that it is sometimes easy to forget that needn't be the case at all. There have long been arts that have come from other perspectives, and which we are seeing more and more notice of over the last few decades, but that the very notion of the arts and its history needs to be seen less as "great objects" and more as embodiments of its creators and as responsive our societal values.

There is nothing wrong, of course, with women or men working in the more traditional arts, but their history is predominantly male and needs to be seen as such. So expectations and comparisons within those traditions are often skewed towards certain perspectives though that isn't always noted. The need for alternative perspectives and methods of creation is acute and absolutely necessary for being able to better see our shared culture for what it is. There's been enormous progress in these areas over those last decades, but still more should be done and this kind of work, by both Giordano in the main links, and Pritchett in the one linked in the comments above are fine examples to look to.
posted by gusottertrout at 12:35 PM on January 19, 2017 [1 favorite]


Perhaps I should add my apologies to Giordano since her work is extraordinary in its own right and needn't have to carry any added weight from art history, I get carried away with my broader enthusiasms sometimes. The delicacy, detailing and color choices in the embroideries are fantastic and need no added excuse for enjoyment on their own merits.
posted by gusottertrout at 12:47 PM on January 19, 2017 [1 favorite]


“I always wondered why the makers leave housekeeping and cooking out of their tales. Isn't it what all the great wars and battles are fought for -- so that at day's end a family may eat together in a peaceful house? The tale tells how the Lords of Manva hunted & gathered roots & cooked their suppers while they were camped in exile in the foothills of Sul, but it doesn't say what their wives & children were living on in their city left ruined & desolate by the enemy. They were finding food too, somehow, cleaning house & honoring the gods, the way we did in the siege & under the tyranny of the Alds. When the heroes came back from the mountain, they were welcomed with a feast. I'd like to know what the food was and how the women managed it.”

― Ursula K. Le Guin, Voices
posted by Celsius1414 at 12:52 PM on January 19, 2017 [18 favorites]


The shading and careful stitch placement on these are remarkable, especially on such a small scale. Traditional shading methods, such as or nué, usually operate on a larger scale.

As an embroiderer (though not at all in the same league), I would be interested in seeing the back of one of her pieces and how she handles so many thread changes.
posted by jedicus at 1:09 PM on January 19, 2017 [7 favorites]


I wonder if the back is like a closet door you shouldn't open lol
posted by Annika Cicada at 1:13 PM on January 19, 2017 [5 favorites]


These are wonderful. I'm so impressed by beautiful embroidery because the little I've done of it, well, I am so slow and get almost nothing done in a session. I'd like to see videos of these artists working to see their speed and efficiency.
posted by Squeak Attack at 1:19 PM on January 19, 2017


She's amazing. I follow her on FB.
posted by KleenexMakesaVeryGoodHat at 1:26 PM on January 19, 2017 [1 favorite]


These are stunning.
posted by lagomorphius at 1:36 PM on January 19, 2017


these are incredibly beautiful!
posted by supermedusa at 1:40 PM on January 19, 2017


I love her embroidery -thanks for posting it. It really is like she is sketching with thread.

If you scroll far enough down her twitter feed, she actually posted the back on one of her pieces, and it's amazing neat!
posted by needlegrrl at 1:56 PM on January 19, 2017 [5 favorites]


I'm really impressed. I did some needlepoint as a kid and have been trying to pick it up again as a reasonable casual hobby. I did this, which was relaxing for my mind but tiring on my eyes.
posted by plinth at 2:11 PM on January 19, 2017 [3 favorites]


Just incredibly lovely.
posted by Akhu at 2:34 PM on January 19, 2017


This is astonishing work. Just unbelievable.

A while back I paid a service online that would do custom embroidery for a specific type of ceremonial outfit. I did a lot of research about how to get the job done before finding that service, and learned some extremely rudimentary (and entirely non-practical) information about embroidery. I looked at a lot of images of people's work over the space of a few months, and I never saw anything this gorgeous that wasn't from a museum website.

Knowing that there are people capable of things like this is really nourishing for the soul. And it's absolutely a shame that more attention doesn't get paid to the things that have traditionally been women's crafts. People who don't know of what's possible are poorer for it.
posted by Ipsifendus at 3:01 PM on January 19, 2017 [2 favorites]


Little mouse the size of a thimble, amazing! She must have hundreds of shades of brown thread.
posted by sammyo at 3:42 PM on January 19, 2017


These are so good.
posted by carter at 4:52 PM on January 19, 2017


She has an Etsy shop where you can buy an embroidered work focusing on a fox skull. Also cards/prints.
posted by amtho at 5:50 PM on January 19, 2017 [1 favorite]


Her work is just breathtaking. Thank you so much for the post.
posted by rtha at 5:58 PM on January 19, 2017


As an embroiderer (though not at all in the same league), I would be interested in seeing the back of one of her pieces and how she handles so many thread changes.

I wonder if the back is like a closet door you shouldn't open lol

My great grandmother taught me to embroider. The first thing she would do when I brought her my work was flip it over, and give me a disapproving look if it was untidy.

I'm guessing Giordano's are immaculate.
posted by BrashTech at 6:17 PM on January 19, 2017 [1 favorite]


As a sewist (but a very bad embroiderer), I've always been told that the real test of skill is what the "wrong" side looks like. I'm guessing her backs are nearly as perfect as her fronts.
posted by mchorn at 7:06 PM on January 19, 2017 [2 favorites]


Here's the back of one of her projects.

I gather from some other pictures that she basically fills left to right but keeps several threads going at once, so she doesn't have to constantly tie off and restart.
posted by jedicus at 7:14 PM on January 19, 2017 [6 favorites]


Me: *scoffing* "How intricate could a piece of embroidery be?"
Also me: *awed silence*
posted by um at 7:19 PM on January 19, 2017 [2 favorites]


Lovely, thanks for posting! I wondered how she found so many shades of brown in the same weight/type of thread, and it turns out she uses ordinary sewing thread. Very clever, if you're willing to work with such thin thread - there are so many brands and colors but they're all about the same weight and texture so they mingle well.
posted by Quietgal at 8:14 PM on January 19, 2017 [2 favorites]


Beautiful. Thank you for posting this.

However, if Chloe's work is "embroidery" I need another word to describe that hobby of mine that also involves hoops, needles, and floss, but bears precious little resemblance to her work.
posted by she's not there at 8:31 PM on January 19, 2017 [2 favorites]


And her work even looks better from the back than mine does from the front!
posted by she's not there at 8:32 PM on January 19, 2017 [1 favorite]


If anybody needed another reason to like her, you can see a bunch of black Penguin paperbacks in the background of that fifth photo, which just so happen to coordinate perfectly with the handmade horse. :D <3
posted by Celsius1414 at 8:35 PM on January 19, 2017


> Here's the back of one of her projects.

Holy shit.

This reminds me of an exhibit I saw years n years ago of...Japanese, I think, needlework pieces where the "backs" of the pieces were as beautiful (and as representative, though different) as the front.
posted by rtha at 8:36 PM on January 19, 2017


Bunnies, it must be BUNNIES!
or maybe squirrels
posted by jenfullmoon at 9:01 PM on January 19, 2017


Beautiful work! I have always loved good embroidery!
posted by Katjusa Roquette at 12:30 AM on January 20, 2017


I wonder if the back is like a closet door you shouldn't open lol
Here's the back of one of her projects.
Her closet...is immaculate...
*cries*
posted by Annika Cicada at 9:16 AM on January 20, 2017 [2 favorites]


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