Oct 2, 2026 · 56 min · 9 segments
In this episode Isabella interviews Dr Emelie Gevalt and Dr Caroline Culp, co-curators of the upcoming exhibition *Locating Girlhood: Place and Identity in Early American “Schoolgirl” Art* at the…
Isabella RosnerHost
You can probably tell from how I sounded in this episode, but please know I was sitting in this conversation with Emily and Caroline with stars in my eyes and the biggest smile on my face because we got to talk about all of the things I love so much and hopefully all the stuff that you guys love too.
After a conversation about needlework and place, I, of course... have to conclude this episode with more chat about that.
We talked a lot about how a girl's surroundings can inform her art making and how a girl's art making can illustrate ideas of belonging, community, and even literal landscape.
But something I want to think about here is how girls' art making is really informative when it comes to literal and cultural understandings of space.
Through a historical girl's stitches, we can often see rolling hills and and French knot sheep and red brick houses.
And the relationship between realness and idealization changes from girl to girl, school to school, needlework to needlework.
But we also see how a girl interpreted her landscape and how we can interpret it too.
Those rolling hillocks with satin stitches or long and short stitches or canvas work stitches even are luscious with their multiple green threads, suggesting a fertile landscape.
Those French knot sheep are fluffy, round with wool that suggests a successful textile industry.
Those red brick houses, whatever stitches they're wrought in, are illustrations of home, family, comfort, and familiarity.
Through Stitch, we can see how a girl saw her surroundings, but also how she wanted to see them and how she wanted us to see them.
You can probably tell from how I sounded in this episode, but please know I was sitting in this conversation with Emily and Caroline with stars in my eyes and the biggest smile on my face because we got to talk about all of the things I love so much and hopefully all the stuff that you guys love too.
After a conversation about needlework and place, I, of course... have to conclude this episode with more chat about that.
We talked a lot about how a girl's surroundings can inform her art making and how a girl's art making can illustrate ideas of belonging, community, and even literal landscape.
But something I want to think about here is how girls' art making is really informative when it comes to literal and cultural understandings of space.
Through a historical girl's stitches, we can often see rolling hills and and French knot sheep and red brick houses.
And the relationship between realness and idealization changes from girl to girl, school to school, needlework to needlework.
But we also see how a girl interpreted her landscape and how we can interpret it too.
Those rolling hillocks with satin stitches or long and short stitches or canvas work stitches even are luscious with their multiple green threads, suggesting a fertile landscape.
Those French knot sheep are fluffy, round with wool that suggests a successful textile industry.
Those red brick houses, whatever stitches they're wrought in, are illustrations of home, family, comfort, and familiarity.
Through Stitch, we can see how a girl saw her surroundings, but also how she wanted to see them and how she wanted us to see them.
The rest of this transcript — segmented and speaker-labeled, so you land on the exact moment something was said
Search every transcript — by keyword, by phrase, or by meaning, across every show Radar indexes
Trends — what is surging across podcasts, measured against its own baseline
Alerts — when a name you follow appears in a newly indexed episode
No account is needed to search Radar.