The Slovak American Society of Washington, D.C.
presents:
“Threads Across Time:
Rusyn/Slovak Spinning, Weaving,
and Bobbin Lacemaking”
by Mary Gido
Saturday, September 17, 2:00 pm ET
To register for this event on Zoom, please visit:
https://us06web.zoom.us/
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. If you have any questions about the event, please contact info@dcslovaks.org.
Mary will present a brief history of Rusyn/Slovak spinning, weaving, and bobbin lace making, and their importance to families and villages. She’ll also talk about the processes of harvesting the plants, processing the fibers, and creating the fabrics that supported the villagers’ lives, as well as the skill and imagination that made the textiles colorful and beautiful.
Mary Gido is of Carpatho-Rusyn descent and has a keen interest in a wide range of needlework. Her interest in fiber arts started at a young age, when her mother, grandmothers, and great-grandmother began instructing her in counted cross stitch, knitting, crocheting, sewing, and weaving rag rugs. Thanks to a grant awarded by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, Mary was able to study traditional methods of Slovak/Carpatho-Rusyn weaving and spinning under the tutelage of master weaver Sigrid Piroch, of Meadville, PA. Mary has also attended bobbin lace classes in England, Belgium, and various locations in the U.S., learning from a number of master lace makers. She has studied Slovak language and culture at the University of Pittsburgh and at Comenius University, in Bratislava. She has given demonstrations at the Slovak Embassy (EU Embassies’ Open House Day) and at various venues around Pennsylvania.
