The artists work explores the poignant disappearance of Pitman script, a once vital language that, while rendered nearly obsolete by advancing technology, still played a crucial role in empowering women in the workplace. It is a lament for a fading skill, a celebration of the ingenuity of women who mastered it, and a meditation on the cyclical nature of progress, where gains are sometimes accompanied by losses. Pitman script, with its elegant curves and concise symbols, represents not just a system of writing, but a key that unlocked professional opportunities for women in a time when such access was limited.
The choice of fabric and stitching as a primary media is deliberate. These are materials and techniques traditionally associated with women’s work, often relegated to the domestic sphere. By reclaiming them for this project, the artists aims to elevate and re contextualise these historical undervalued skills, mirroring the way Pitman script itself empowered women to move beyond traditional roles. The act of stitching becomes a metaphor for preserving and mending, both physically and metaphorically. Just as threads are interwoven to create a fabric, so too are the stories of these women woven into the fabric of history, often unseen and unheard.
Fine Art 
Emily Thompson | Fine Art
