A heavily hand-stitched design inspired by patterns found in ceremonial tribal face painting from New Guinea. The overall visual impression intended is a bright, highly decorated surface from which the faces emerge. Satin, straight, split and chain stitches were worked in a variety of threads on a cotton background.
‘Countless thousands of years ago human beings stepped outside their ready-made nature to refashion themselves as works of art in their own world.’
Ernst Fuchs (Austrian artist, 1930–2015)
Patterns found in several forms of body decoration from different cultures and countries. 1) Face painting from Southern Asia. 2) Ceremonial body painting with chalk from Africa. 3) A plastic stencil template used for henna decoration of hands in India. 4) A selection of painted henna patterns used for celebrations on hands and feet in India and Pakistan. 5) Native American warrior tribesman with distinct face painting and feather head decoration. 6) Detail of typical animal-inspired body painting used in tribal ceremonies, Africa. 7) Carved and painted patterns on a wooden mask from Central Africa. 8) Whole-body tattoo patterns from Japan.
From earliest times people have felt the need to enhance and decorate their belongings and surroundings. This is also true of their bodies with the skin becoming a surface, almost a canvas, for outward artistic expression. Decoration of the human body has been practised throughout history and is still prevalent and important to many people today.
A whole range of different types and styles of body adornment, such as painting, scarification, tattooing and the wearing of particular objects, jewellery and clothing have various meanings depending upon the culture, the circumstances and the social context in which they are found. The symbolism of materials, patterns of inheritance and colours, denoting attributes such as power, prowess in hunting and protection, are all important in body decoration and have been used historically in many forms of display, in magic, ritual and dance. Body decoration, sometimes used as camouflage or disguise, enhanced by movement and gesture, has enabled people to present themselves beyond their own human form – as animals, demons and spirits, fulfilling an important role in storytelling and the dissemination of knowledge and beliefs within their particular culture.
Dancer. A cotton fabric, monoprinted with wavy stripes, was used as a background for this hand-embroidered and partially camouflaged figure. The patterns were derived from tribal African skin painting replicating animal markings and used in rituals connected with success in hunting. Straight and split stitches were worked in cotton, rayon and silk threads.
In Western culture the performance arts, such as drama, ballet, contemporary dance and street theatre, often use very imaginative body decoration to great effect. Many examples can be found of extraordinary body art and costume designs by famous artists and designers, such as Léon Bakst and Pablo Picasso, who were commissioned to work for ballet companies and the theatre.
Girl with Tattooed Face. A stylised depiction of a modern Western face, decoratively patterned with bright tattoos. It was worked on a background of space-dyed fine felt, hand stitched with seeding, split, chain and straight stitches in cotton, rayon and silk threads. The hair was made from an Indian floss rayon. Rings and studs were added as a final embellishment.
Body art can also be used to demonstrate social and political position, professional or economic status and, very importantly, belonging and conforming to a particular group or society. Group membership, identity and partisanship are all conveyed in the way in which the body is decorated. Scarification, the deliberate decorative scarring of the body practised by some African tribespeople, visually records and celebrates the stages of a person’s life as well as demonstrating status. Conversely, some forms of decoration in other individuals that involve the physical alteration, and even mutilation of the body, can be intended to shock and are possibly ways of expressing rebellion and disassociation from society. This could be said to be true of some of the more extreme forms of tattooing and body piercing seen in the West over recent years. However, it must be said that the current trend for tattoos, some of them very beautiful, has made the practice more mainstream, especially when worn by popular sports stars and entertainers.
The design for this piece was made after studying many extreme contemporary tattoos. The colours chosen were ones that seemed popular choices in many tattoos and yellow was added to give a light, bright tone. Totally unlike my usual work or subject matter, this was nevertheless a very enjoyable piece to make.
The instructions given are simple so that you can produce similar work or, better still, have fun decorating a face or use designs of your own invention.
Usual sewing equipment; dye or acrylic paint; light-coloured felt for background; selection of mostly fine threads (silks, cottons); quantity of glossy thread for hair; fabric marker pen; selection of studs and rings for piercings; card or craft Vilene (Pellon) and cotton fabric for backing.
1 Dampen the felt and randomly sprinkle with dye or very diluted acrylic paint. Only enough to stain the felt is required. Dry thoroughly, then press.
2 Enlarge diagram shown or make your own drawing. The original piece is approx. 16cm (6¼in) in height without the hair. Tack the head shape (excluding hair) on to the felt. Cut the diagram into pieces (eyes, mouth and so on) and use these as templates to mark the features with a fine marker.
3 All outlines were defined with several rows of split stitch or chain stitch, making both thin and thicker lines for variation. The tattoo patterns were outlined in bright blue, the eyes and eyebrows in black. Begin by stitching the outlines so that the face is covered in linear patterns. Fill the eyelids with blue stem stitch worked from side to side.
4 Fill the zigzag shapes above the eyelid with red couching. Emphasize above the eyebrows with black couching.
5 Stitch the other main shapes, referring to the diagrams and the photograph opposite. For each cheek, I outlined a section with yellow thread couched on with a finer red thread (a) and another section with a double row of red couching (b). I filled these with French knots and seeding in red, blue and green. I used couching, stem stitch and chain stitch for the circular pattern on the forehead with couching and split stitch in the centre (c). I outlined other areas and filled them with seed stitch in blue, red and green (d). For the eyes, I worked rounds of split stitch in blue and black for the pupils and used white split stitch for the whites, with black split stitch for the outlines and lashes (e). I worked the lips in red satin stitch (f).
6 Cut out the face by trimming around the original tacked line.
7 Cut glossy thread into lengths and, using several threads together, take a small stitch through the felt and tie ends in a double knot as show. Start this process above the ears, then over the top of the head, working forwards toward the forehead. Several colours may be used if wished. When finished, trim hair to shape.
8 Pierce the face with rings and studs – as many as desired.
9 Cut card or Vilene approx. 1cm (⅜in) smaller than the head but the same shape. Cover with cotton fabric and attach to the head with small stitches tied on the back.
Body and face painting has traditionally been carried out with earth pigments, such as ochre, in shades from red to pale yellow, while manganese and lime have been used to make black and white respectively. These colours were painted or rubbed into the skin and hair. Nowadays we have a wide choice of theatrical and other make-up as well as many richly coloured hair dyes, should we wish to use them.
In addition to various forms of skin decoration, from the beginning of time and in various parts of the world, the wearing of particular items, principally masks, has played a very important role in different societies. Providing disguise too, in religious and ritualistic ceremonies, they have allowed the wearer to take on the exaggerated characteristics of the spirit, individual or creature depicted. In many instances, masks have been richly decorated with carved and painted patterns and sometimes with other significant embellishments, such as beads, feathers and amulets.
Throughout history, other forms of ornamentation, such as jewellery, have been used to enhance the human body. Perhaps we are accustomed to think that jewellery is only made from precious metals and stones, but in the past body adornments and jewellery have been made from other materials, equally valued by the people who have used them. Both very simple and hugely elaborate pieces have been made from decoratively used organic elements like grasses and stems, seeds, hollow bones, animal teeth, wood, feathers, dried roots and different kinds of shells. Some of the jewellery, or the elements it was constructed from, were highly valued and traded at great distances and some were believed to be powerful charms.
While it would be unethical to copy exactly from the decorations so meaningful and important to others, we can nevertheless learn a great deal and be inspired by the patterns found in many forms of body art, both old and contemporary. In the making of the stitched pieces in this chapter, I have tried to convey something of the vigour and spontaneity of marks and the richness of colour I have observed in body decoration from many cultures. The intricacy of pattern and the skill shown in the best of body art elevates the practice, in many eyes, to a creative, expressive art form.
FURTHER WORK
• Find examples of different forms of body decoration and draw these for future reference.
• Create a pattern by drawing round your own hand and overlapping the images, similar to the one in the piece shown here. Try different arrangements of the overlapping hands. Fill the shapes obtained with stitched patterns in strong colours.
• Try to find examples of jewellery and other body adornments, then experiment with patterns or whole pieces based on these.
Henna Hands. A template was made from drawing round a hand and this was used to mark the background fabric by drawing around it and overlapping it several times, producing many different shapes. The outlines, worked in white stem stitch, contain filling patterns based on Indian henna designs. A variety of simple stitches, contrasting in weight and scale, were worked in cotton, rayon and silk threads.
