Lectern Cover 1953

This 'Lectern Cover' was stitched by an unknown maker, at an unknown time, but now it lives at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. I think about the red velvet that makes up most of the cover, how heavy it is and how good it must have felt to touch as the artist stitched the gold decorations on. The Star of David, the lions, the Hebrew inscriptions, and even the metallic trim. It’s all so incredibly detailed! I imagine the maker adding each element one by one, maybe from a pattern but probably from memory, from a lifetime of seeing similar designs. What was the occasion? Who would see it? The hand of the maker, stitching away, adding another layer of meaning and story. I feel as though the artist is in conversation with other artists across time. The conversation is about faith, memory, skill, and a connection to the past.