Dorothy Campbell Smith enrolled as a student at The Glasgow School of Art in 1940. After a short time studying painting, she changed her subject to design, specialising in embroidery and woven textiles. She was awarded the Newbery Medal for distinction in diploma work in 1944 and went on to become a teacher in various Glasgow schools.
This stool was created by Smith, presumably as part of her studies. As you can see from the images, the top can be detached from the base of the stool. Interestingly, the embroidered top has been made from dog hair and wool, coloured with natural vegetable dyes. This is possibly due to a reduction in materials available during the Second World War, when many GSA students were challenged to produce work with whatever they could find.
This is one of several examples of work from our Papers of Dorothy Campbell Smith collection, which includes her notebooks, designs on paper and embroidery samples.
