Bargello Needlepoint Paradigm Shift

---

The 14 images above document paradigm shift from #1 Florentine Bargello medallions from the 1500s to 2000's #13 self- organizing individual to global network, and the unexpected #14 that is formed in the background from the excess waste yarn. The yarn-drawn needlepoint images are 21"x22" to 18"x22" and were done in a variety of mostly acrylic yarn "drawn" through the surface of high-quality orange-edge size 12 needlepoint canvas. The series was patiently completed from 2017 to 2023. Most of these images were completed during the COVID lockdown.

I had enjoyed making the intricate patterns of Bargello needlepoint for a few years from 2014 to 2017. Once I learned Bargello, I began playing with the traditional patterns, making new variations and developing my own style. I realized that I could make a series of progressive images by taking away one bit of structure, canvas by canvas, and so dismantle the #1 Renaissance framework from the 1500s and shift peacefully to a more kind, sustainable, healthy, and equitable framework culminating with #12, today. I imagined a better future, represented by a final self-organizing #13.

While making the first #1-12 images, I put all  the extra scraps of yarn into a single bag. Then, in the last canvas I attempted to use every scrap so that no yarn would be wasted. I finished the #13 image but still had yarn, so I created image #14 image which was a totally unplanned, random, self-organizing network of color that seemed to take on a life of its own. 

Enjoy this visual essay attempting to model needed paradigm shift (and unexpected consequences)!

Grandma Bryant made beautiful Bargello needlepoint pillows and textiles. She was my husband's best friend's grandma. She was like a grandma to me at at time when I lived far away from my own grandparents. After she passed, I missed her feisty personality. I wanted to celebrate her existence; she inspired me to learn Bargello. This series is dedicated to Grandma Bryant and all those who keep the art of Bargello needlepoint alive! Thank you for being here, too!

Contact me at jen@jenseron.com to exhibit this series or to commission more artwork in this style! 

Please contact me if you are interested in learning more.