New RSN Exhibition at the Fashion and Textile Museum
30th September, 2021
‘150 Years of the Royal School of Needlework: Crown to Catwalk’
(1 April – 4 September 2022)
We are very excited to announce that we will be celebrating our 150th anniversary in 2022 with a unique exhibition at the Fashion and Textile Museum in London. The exhibition, ‘150 Years of the Royal School of Needlework: Crown to Catwalk’, will explore the RSN’s contribution to the world of embroidery and showcase our remarkable history.
In 1872, the Royal School of Needlework was founded on two key principles – the first, the preservation of hand embroidery as an art form and the second, the support of women’s independence through work. In the intervening 150 years, the RSN’s journey towards these goals has taken many unexpected forms and featured countless high-profile projects.
The exhibition will present collaborations with the great names of the Arts and Crafts movement, commissions produced for the British royal family, contemporary works created for top, international designers and pieces by our talented students. This in-depth retrospective will present textiles from the Royal School of Needlework’s 5,000-piece archive, alongside examples from museums and collections across the UK.
‘150 Years of the Royal School of Needlework: Crown to Catwalk’ runs from 1 April – 4 September at the Fashion and Textile Museum in London. Tickets are now on sale and should be pre-booked on the Fashion and Textile’s website ftmlondon.org. Adults cost: £12.65, concessions: £11.55, students: £10.45, under 12s: free
The Fashion and Textile Museum opens from Tuesday – Saturday, 11am – 6pm and is situated in the heart of fashionable Bermondsey Village at 83 Bermondsey Street, London SE1 3XF.
Images featured below: Blackwork portrait of David Bowie by RSN Future Tutor Sarah de Rousset-Hall; Final Major Project ‘Faith & Fears’ by RSN Degree Student Alex Standring; Final Major Project ‘The Lost Garden’ RSN Degree Student Livia Papiernik; Silk Shading and Laidwork featuring a Lapwing by RSN Diploma Student in 1950s; Millennium Sampler A to Z by RSN Apprentices; Panel design by Walter Crane worked by the RSN in 1875; Silk Shaded Magnolias by RSN Head of Workroom Margaret Bartlett in 1940s.
