Join us in the community room next to Abney Park cafe for a history talk about a key aspect of Victorian mourning rituals. 

FOREVER NEAR - A HISTORY OF HAIRWORK by Alessandra Curtis 

Hairwork is the almost forgotten craft of manipulating human hair into decorative designs for jewellery or artwork. Some are purely ornamental, others for commemoration, but always imbued with meaning, folklore and ritual significance. 

Today, there are only a handful of artisans who continue to practice traditional hairwork worldwide. However, until the late nineteenth century, disembodied hair was regarded as a very precious material with hairwork being a cherished folk art of the middle and upper classes. A hair lock was seen as a portable human relic maintaining an earthly bond with loved ones. 

This lecture aim to explore four distinct techniques employed during the Georgian and Victorian eras, focusing on their applications for the deceased, the living, or both, along with the cultural contexts that shaped them. 

Alessandra Curtis is a British-Italian Folklorist with a foundation in archaeology. Her research primarily explores local legends, as well as material culture associated with themes of separation, absence, and death. She has an antiquarian approach to her studies and she collects hair jewellery, trench art, old bottles and quirky items in general. In 2023 she earned her master’s degree in Folklore Studies from the University of Hertfordshire.