love is pain

For this project, I brought two of my favourite things together: vintage workwear and hand-embroidery.
I love workwear for its durability, its utility and its simplicity. It was made to last and to protect, every detail makes sense and has a use. Do not get me wrong, frills and lace are great and I love them dearly, but there is something so timeless about good workwear, something so classic, you just cannot beat it.
And embroidery… what can I say, I still have the first scrap I ever stitched on, from when I was about 4 years old. I have very fond memories of embroidering doll clothes when I was in primary school, then teaching myself how to cross-stitch when I was 7 and eventually choosing embroidery and needlework in all its variations as the focus for my diploma collection.

So yes, this is a love story.

The embroidery itself was actually inspired by the Mater Dolorosa. I am not religious by any means, but I have always liked the depictions of the flaming hearts, as well as the Seven Sorrows of Mary - a heart punctured by seven daggers. There is just something so powerful and so brutal about this image: one dagger alone would kill you, let alone seven. Often, the hearts are on fire and bleeding at the same time, with dark, yet bright reds in contrast to the silver and black daggers. Or they are completely painted in gold, as if they were above a mortal heart. For me, this image is kind of a metaphor: Life is so hard and there are so many obstacles and pain and sorrow, but we can survive. The heart does not stop beating. How can this not be inspiring? I always wanted to create something in homage to these hearts and I am so glad I finally have a result in my hands.

I used five different tones of red for the heart. I lost track of how many skeins I used, I definitely used up three completely and then bits and parts of the other ones. I worked from the outline inwards and from the center back out, changing colours when it felt right. The original plan was to fill the heart completely, but along the way I realized it would look much more powerful with an empty center. My embroidery process is always very intuitive, it is meditating for me and I tend to get into a flow, where I just make decisions on the go. They normally turn out better than the original plan.
The daggers and swords are made out of felt, which I cut into shape and then painted for more depth and dimension. I left some spaces in the embroidery empty, in order for the blades to really dig into the heart and not just sit on top. The result is this interesting combination of textures and surfaces, with a very organic, fleshy and meaty heart and the very straight and clean knives. The felt makes the blades look almost blunt, which I love, as the whole image gains in brutality, which is perfect for this subject.

I really enjoyed the process of embellishing this jacket, and the result gives me so much satisfaction. I already have plans for future projects and a few pieces that would definitely benefit from a bit of thread and colour. If you want your own, custom-embroidered piece, you can contact me here.

 All images © Lukas Jahn