Connections: Wonders at St. Luke’s
East Hamptoners revere the heritage of this place and are proud that so many ancient objects have been preserved. The house that has remained in continuous use as a residence the longest dates to 1680 (and The Star is pleased to provide a look at it in today’s Habitat section). That certainly sounds like a very long time . . . but as historically significant as our treasures may seem, an exhibition now at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church puts them in perspective.
The chapels at the south and north sides of St. Luke’s became ad hoc museums on May 7 when “Sacred Threads,” a magnificent display of ecclesiastical vestments and objects from the 14th through the 18th century, opened as a benefit for the charities the church supports.
The exhibition is just a glimpse, a selection, of the 3,000 pieces owned by Jill Lasersohn, a parishioner who has made the acquisition and preservation of ecclesiastical vestments her life’s work. Charles Keller and Glenn Purcell, East Hampton residents who are experts on East Hampton Dominy family furniture, as well, created the meticulous display.
Ms. Lasersohn’s library contains some 600 books, and the St. Luke’s show, an aesthetic pleasure, is informed by a catalog and guide that contain the kind of information usually known only to scholars. It is simply astonishing that she and Mr. Keller and Mr. Purcell were able to locate paintings that show similar, and in some cases nearly exact, examples of fabrics in historic context.
For the most part, the materials come from Italy, France, Spain, and England, with some pieces from as far away as Turkey. Some of the patterns are influenced by the decorative arts of the Far East, and most of the cloths were woven in Asia, shipped west, and then painstakingly encrusted with gold, silver, and silk embroideries. Even Michelangelo and Pisanello are said to have created designs (or “cartoons”) for velvets that would become “the robes of kings and popes.”
Gold and silver embroidery on some of the garments shows the wear that is evidence of churchgoers’ hands reaching out to snatch a bit of precious metal. Dragons, pomegranates and wheat, doves and cocks, lions and crowns appear as symbols of faith in incredibly delicate and intricate patterns. The fabrics become more vibrant and three-dimensional in the 18th century, with one piece showing flowers in 10 different colors. The catalog notes that the least expensive gilded cloth in the exhibition would cost nearly $8,000 a yard today.
The show also includes elaborate gloves and hats, simple linen towels of pretty blue and white (one with a hunter riding a unicorn), and some golden wax balls. These were, it is explained, used to select a new doge in Venice, where they governed for 1,000 years.
In the guide, Ms. Lasersohn is quoted saying, “Textiles are so tactile, it is like holding a piece of history in your hand. When you have a rare fragment from the 1300s that’s managed to survive, you begin to ponder: Who wore this? A bishop? A priest? What do the symbols stand for? What was it used for: Was it sat on? Slept in? Prayed over? How many people have touched it?”
You can’t actually hold a piece of history in your hand if you visit the exhibition, but you will have a chance to see the march of Western civilization in an unusual and enlightening way.
Everything in the exhibition is exceedingly rare, and so too are shows like this one. Only a few opportunities to see it remain: The church will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. today, tomorrow, and Saturday, and on Sunday from 1 to 3 p.m. Then, wearing white gloves, Ms. Lasersohn and a few parishioners will put it all away.