CONSTANCE HOWARD (1910-2000) §
'HARVEST MOON', LARGE AND RARE EMBROIDERED APPLIQUÉ PANEL, CIRCA 1960
£3,625
Auction: 23 February 2017 at 10:00 GMT
Description
worked in wool, silk and other textiles and with applied beads, in original giltwood frame with plaque inscribed HARVEST MOON/ CONSTANCE HOWARD
Dimensions
90 x 85cm
Footnote
Literature: Goldsmiths, University of London, Professor Ben Pimlott, 'Constance Howard, MBE', 2017
Pimlott, Ben, The Guardian, 'Constance Howard, As artist and teacher, she transformed the status of embroidery and textile design', 2000
Note: Arguably the most influential British pioneer in textile design of her generation Constance Howard (1910-2000) transformed the status of embroidery and textile design. When Howard began, embroidery and textile design were seen by many people as a comparatively minor craft, and the rise of its artistic standing owes a great deal to her work and example.
Born in Northampton, from the age of 10 she began to study art at evening classes. After leaving school at 14, she was denied a grant to the Royal College of Art. In 1945, after marrying sculptor Harold Wilson Parker, she became a part-time tutor at Goldsmiths College, London. She later became principal lecturer of textiles and fashion and established an embroidery department in the art school. The course at Goldsmiths came to influence textile design everywhere. Howard viewed embroidery as an art form and a vehicle for artistic self-expression. Her most celebrated commissions at the time included 'The Country Wife', a large hanging for the country pavilion of the Festival of Britain in 1951; two hangings for the Northampton Museum and Art Gallery; and embroideries for Eton College, Lincoln Cathedral and Makerere University, Kampala.
In 1975 she was awarded an MBE for services to embroidery. Throughout her career Howard authored; 'Design for Embroidery from Traditional English Sources' (1956), 'Inspiration for Embroidery' (1966), 'Embroidery and Colour' (1976) and 'Textile Crafts' (1979) which a year later came to be known as 'The Constance Howard Book of Stitches'. Later she wrote the four- volume study, 'Twentieth Century Embroidery in Great Britain' (1981-86). At Goldsmiths the 'Constance Howard Textiles Study Collection' was established, which now contains more than 2000 textile pieces and related items.