The Hunt for the Unicorn

The unicorn is an age old symbol of masculinity and fertility and medieval tales of the unicorn tells us that the creature can only be captured by luring it out with a young virgin.

With that in mind I posted an advert in the ‘Personals’ section of a popular listings website, on behalf of an imaginary virgin girl in the hope of ensnaring a "unicorn" for myself. The content of the Hunt for the Unicorn embroideries is extracted directly from the responses received to this advert.

I have adopted the use of cross stitch in the creation of these works specifically due to the similarity between the form of these stitches and the digital pixel. Due to the size of the stitches, and the close proximity of the holes in the fabric, the images appear if they are made up of squares of coloured thread. Similarly, digital images are created from a field of square pixels that form a coherent image when viewed at a distance. This use of cross stitch therefore refers to the digital origins of the content of the work. These digital origins are also referred to in the content of some of the works. For example, it is traditional, though not compulsory, to include an alphabet in a needlework sampler; a number of my works include the alphabet in a QWERTY configuration as found on a computer keyboard.

A number of the works have QR codes stitched into the designs which link to active content hosted at www.unicorn-dating.com. This includes videos and animated embroideries as well as interactive content such as an opportunity to adopt a unicorn as well as to sign up for Unicorn Dating and create your own dating profile. This takes work back into the digital realm that originally provided the content for the embroideries in the first place reminding us that the real and virtual worlds are not mutually exclusive environments.

You can read more about the practical and theoretical research that underpins this work on my log here: www.spikeworld.co.uk/twenty-first-century-unicorn-hunting/

(NB – the QR codes in the photographs of the embroideries have been Photoshop’d so that they do not work. Access can only be gained through the physical presence of, and interaction with the work.)