In advance of our Rework It With Pride course in September, we’re taking a look at the links between the LGBTQIA+ community and textiles.
Queerness has a long and storied history with textile craft. Lesbian poet Sappho in Ancient Greece wrote “Sweet mother, I cannot weave – slender Aphrodite has overcome me with longing for a girl”.
In the 19th Century, Anne Lister documented crossing the boundaries of masculine and feminine dress by wearing all black, and adopting male accessories like gentlemen’s braces.
In the 80s and 90s, HIV activists made t-shirts and banners to protest the government’s inaction on an epidemic that disproportionately affected the gay community.
Made in 2023, The Norfolk Trans Joy Community Quilt consists of individual squares crafted by trans, nonbinary, gender non-conforming people and trusted allies, expressing personal forms of joy relating to the trans experience.
The LGBTQIA+ community has long embraced making clothing and accessories our own, because ready to wear garments from shops are not necessarily tailored to our bodies. The Museum of Transology has many such examples, such as a hand knitted packer, crafted rainbow kippah, reworked and altered binders , and a personalised slogan t-shirt.
https://www.museumoftransology.com/collections/cabinetofcuriosity/handembroidedsampler
Clothing is intertwined with social aspects of self-exploration for LQBTQ+ individuals, helping find an outlet for encounters with queerness through a more interactive and personal means of creation.
Starting on Wednesday 3rd September we’re running a 4 week Rework it with Pride course, where you can learn a variety of ways to tailor and upcycle your wardrobe to work for your own unique style and identity.
