The Long and Winding Road of Lace

The long arc of human history has been accompanied since the 1400s one way or another by lace. The Italians call this, delightfully, ‘Stitches in Air’ and it has many origin myths from the Venice lagoon to the gently rolling countryside of northern Europe. It has been smuggled and stolen, worn and desired by kings and cavaliers, by maids and madmen. It has been painted and preserved and the songs and rhymes of lace makers have been passed down the generations.

This episode of Haptic and Hue is about one of the most intricate and complex human skills ever developed – lace-making. But it is not just about the deeply storied history of lace, it’s also about its modern revival as a new and beautiful art form and how contemporary craftswoman and men are using lace techniques to address complex issues like gender, sexuality, and climate change.  

You can find a full script of this podcast, pictures, links and show-notes at www.hapticandhue.com/listen, as well as detail on how to find your own lace classes and lace books.