The Red Dress
Kirstie Macleod, a textile artist based in Somerset, brought her embroidered Red Dress into Strode for a study day. The original dress was made as a performance piece for Arts Dubai in 2009. Kirstie wore it whilst embroidering inside a glass cube. Afterwards she developed it as a celebratory platform for women’s voices to be heard using the universal language of embroidery, with no borders or prejudice. It is a symbol of unity and identity.
Made of burgundy silk dupion it consists of 73 panels, which were distributed to 29 countries around the globe to be embroidered by 137 commissioned and paid artisans. As it has been exhibited more embroidery has been added. One group of refugees in Syria used their money to buy things to help them get established in their new lives such as a goat and some fish. 50% of the profits from Red Dress Etsy shop go back to the artisans.
The colours and stitching is exquisite. Each embroidery tells the story and culture of the artisans who worked on it. There are representations from women who were the victims of war, such as the white doves from Kosovo, plus others from Syria and Rwanda. Colourful cultural works show images from Australia (Great Barrier Reef/Uluru), Colombia (Toucan), the UK, DR Congo, USA, India, stunning embroidered floral patterns from Mexico, Japan and tribeswomen of Kenya. There are 7 bees in the dress, plus many more images of nature to find.
Asked why it is a red dress, she replied: “You can’t ignore red – it’s strong, angry, passionate and emotional” – everything we felt as we studied it.
