Polish Lace Makers: Gender, Heritage, and Identity

(Hardback)

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Anna Sznajder centers this ethnography of gendered creative practice in the lace-making community of Bobowa, Poland. Grounded in rural gender studies and feminist epistemology, Polish Lace Makers is a pivotal historical and modern account of the social and economic behaviors of entrepreneurial craftswomen tasked with preserving the originality and symbolic value of lace. Sznajder traces the evolving work strategies and occupational identities of this community from the early 19th century up to the modern day, outlining the challenges of World War II, communist rule, and socialist Poland. The case studies included in this account are emulative of the larger struggle of female entrepreneurs to self-manage, innovate, create, and provide for themselves and their families. This book is recommended for scholars of anthropology, sociology, gender studies, and European studies.

Reviews

As lace makers, we often look at a piece of lace or a pattern and consider its design and construction. This book challenges us to go much deeper than that and recognize the cultural, social, and economic history and context within which the lace has been made. Anna Sznajder eloquently captures the significant contribution of Bobowa lace makers to the region's cultural and economic history. -- Margaret Abbey, PSM, The InternationalBobbin and Needle Lace Organisation (OIDFA)

Author Bio

Anna Sznajder is independent scholar.