Cotsen Textile Traces Talk: Garden of Love
In celebration of Valentine’s Day, the Cotsen Textile Traces Study Center is exhibiting a selection of embroidered textiles from 17th-century England. This micro exhibition,“Garden of Love,” brings together five objects: a floral and fruit-studded sleeve, a “sweet bag” that once contained scented flowers, a Bible cover depicting Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, a pair of flower bejeweled gloves, and an elaborately decorated casket containing a miniature flower garden. Each of these pieces reveal the rich personal lives of the women who made, used or wore them.
Indulge in an enchanting and romantic journey with us, as researchers Rachel Pollack and Serena Martin delve into the timeless allure of female beauty and the private lives of elite women in 17th-century England.
About Rachel Pollack
Rachel Pollack is a visiting professor of writing at the George Washington University and has taught courses for the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design and the University Honors Program. She has a Ph.D. in art history from the University of Maryland, where she specialized in Northern Baroque art with a subspecialty in Greco-Roman sculpture.
About Serena Martin
Serena Martin is a fourth-year student at GW pursuing a B.A. in international affairs and art history. She is conducting research for an honors thesis focused on Elizabethan portraiture and gender politics. Her research for the micro exhibition "Garden of Love" explores how 17th-century English embroidered clothing and textiles embody concepts of femininity and female empowerment in late Renaissance England.
About Micro Exhibitions
Visit the museum’s lower-level galleries to see a rotating selection of artworks from the Cotsen Textile Traces Study Collection. Inspired by contemporary culture and world events, these monthly micro exhibitions are collaborative projects with GW faculty, students and special guests.
About the Center
The Cotsen Textile Traces Study Center is home to one of the world’s most significant textile study collections. Assembled by the late Lloyd Cotsen, it consists of nearly 4,000 fragments of textiles created around the globe and dating from antiquity to the present, as well as some 100 sample books. Scholars, faculty, students and artists are invited to schedule a research visit, and the entire collection is accessible online. The center also presents rotating gallery displays and public programs inspired by the collection. Learn more about the center
How to Participate
This program will be in a hybrid format. Join us in person at the museum or register to watch the livestream online via Zoom. When you register, you can also request to receive a reminder email one day before the program with the link included.