I believe that we all know that this year marks the 800th anniversary of the signing of Magna Carta (note the link here is from Wikipedia).
As part of the celebrations and at a crucial point in our history where the Human Rights Act is under threat, Cornelia Parker was commissioned to come up with a piece which is currently on display at the British Library.Her Wikipedia Magna Carta is the freezing in time of this entry from the constantly evolving encyclopedia and produced in association with the Embroiderers’ Guild, Fine Cell Work, Hand & Lock and the Royal School of Needlework.
About 200 people contributed with the bulk of the stitching by prisoners through Fine Cell Work. Words were also embroidered by a range of people prominent in their field including, to name only a few, Germaine Greer, Peter Tatchell, Shami Chakrabarthi, Edward Snowden, Caitlin Moran and Brian Eno.
This detail below is one of several highly-worked sections. The variety of stitching qualities and skills reflects the multiple contributions to Wikipedia as well as to human rights. It’s all a work in progress; the original document has influenced the establishment of human rights all over the world and is rightly treasured.
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