Botanical Alphabet Cross-Stitch
date: label: Date
content: 1994
name: label: Artist
content: Ira Blount
notes: label: Caption
content: A botanical alphabet blooms on this colorful cross-stitch sampler bordered in green. As early as the fifteenth century, needlework samplers served as ways to teach and practice sewing, an important domestic skill. They often doubled as academic instruction, like this alphabet sampler made by artist Ira Blount (1918-2020). Each letter features a flower that starts with that letter. For example, an iris stitched in purple, light blue, and gold stands next to a purple letter “I”. At the top, an alphabetical list identifies each flower by name in matching thread colors. Though this sampler does not conform to utilitarian purposes of the past, the intricate stitching demonstrates Blount’s command of a traditional sewing technique.
label: Caption
content: After moving to Washington, DC following World War II, Ira Blount mastered dozens of artisanal crafts. His love for crafting, learning, and community engagement would endure over the course of his long life and career.
setName: label: See more items in
content: Anacostia Community Museum Collection
creditLine: label: Cite As
content: Gift of Ira Blount
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: Anacostia Community Museum
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: 2011.0004.0100
objectType: label: Type
content: cross-stitch
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: CC0
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: Aida fabric, cotton thread
label: Dimensions
content: 20 1/8 × 16 in. (51.1 × 40.6 cm)