Lizzie Borden and her dirty laundry

If the purpose of art is to thrill, engage and titilate then I think our purchase last week for the collection may have fulfilled its aims. 

Charlie Pi was formerly known as Charlie Pig, a performance artist who formed the Synoptic Realist Tie Company - doesn't that sound intriguing? - and is now making art works.  Anyway, a couple of weeks ago we managed to purchase a series of textile pieces created by Charlie Pi entitled Lizzie Borden's Dirty Laundry. 

Lizzie Borden may be familar to some of you but to those of you who do not know the name, here is a brief history. Be warned! There are some fairly gruesome details.

Lizzie Borden was American, and lived in the 19th Century. In 1892, her father and stepmother were found dead and Lizzie was charged with the murders. A sensational trial followed and Lizzie was found "Not Guilty". If you fancy looking up some of the more lurid details a simple Google search for "Lizzie Borden" will find all sorts of information including the fact that a popular ditty was created about the crimes. 

Our purchase for the textile collection is of handkerchiefs which are painted with images from  key moments in Lizzie's life. It is most certainly not to everybody's taste, being somewhat graphic, but the handkerchiefs demonstrate the ongoing interest in this Victorian crime scene. They are also interesting artefacts and, anyway, sho said that art always needs to be pretty! If you want to see exactly what we have added to the collection, head on over to https://charliepi.wordpress.com/lizzie-bordens-dirty-laundry/. Oh, and do let us know what you think of the addition.