Ariadne is an artist and surface pattern designer. Her unique style is inspired by Greek folk motifs and shapes of the 18th/19th century. She is fascinated by their symbolic meanings and what they represented to the women who wore or embroidered them. Her goal is to bring them out of the archives and into our everyday lives.
🧠Folk Facts #4: Influence from the West ðŸ§
|
Hi there, I am so glad you are here for the last email of the Folk Fact series and it is a juicy one! So let’s dive in... What is happening here?Greek folk art has been influenced both by the East and the West for a number of historical reasons. Today I am going to touch on the influence that the European art had on Greek folk art mainly because I want to share with you some very inspiring 16th century Pattern Books that I’ve come across in my research. They not only influenced Greek folk art, but also European art and design for many centuries after.Folk FactAbove you are looking at a detail of a dress from the island of Crete with a very characteristic two-tailed mermaid or siren. Below you see an image from one of the 16th century Pattern Books that depicts a similar creature that holds her two tails in her hands. This is only one of many motifs found in those books that have inspired Greek women to add them to their embroideries and Crete is one of the regions where this influence is very easily identified. The most interesting thing for me is that Greek women didn’t just copy those motifs, they added symbolic meanings to them and used them to express their wishes, hopes and desires.If you are getting curious to see the books, I have created a pdf with links where you can find them in full through the MET archives website. ​DOWNLOAD LIST OF BOOKS HERE​​​ Some ThoughtsTake a moment to look into them and you will notice that some of these motifs will remind you of design styles of later centuries, like for example the Arts and Crafts movement. It is no surprise that these motifs influenced European design as embroidery and lacework were very popular ways of creating home décor items at the time. And I am wondering if those motifs adorned the homes that designers like William Morris would have been brought up in. How fascinating would that be?I hope you find them inspiring and I’d love to hear your thoughts on them. So please hit reply to let me know. P.S. Have a look at Starbucks’ logo and you will find a version of that two-tailed mermaid. That’s the power of a great motif, it can really travel through time! Until next time! If you found these resources inspiring you are more than welcome to forward the email to a friend you think may like them too. Want to support my work? You can Buy Me a Coffee. Your contributions support my new ventures. Thank you! Let's stay connected! ​ |
​Ariadne Kritonos
Ariadne is an artist and surface pattern designer. Her unique style is inspired by Greek folk motifs and shapes of the 18th/19th century. She is fascinated by their symbolic meanings and what they represented to the women who wore or embroidered them. Her goal is to bring them out of the archives and into our everyday lives.