Love on a small island

Monday 10 August 2020

Themes of finding and celebrating love in a tiny community are being highlighted in a new Sark exhibition, showcasing 60 years of the island's wedding dresses.

Entitled ‘Something Borrowed’, the exhibition features the dresses of 25 Sark brides, presented in a series of tableaux which trace a route through the historic residence of the 'ruler' of Sark, La Seigneurie.

The dresses have been lent by Sark residents and are displayed with information and pictures which tell the story of each dress and recount the bride’s memories of her wedding day.

Pictured: The exhibition at La Seigneurie runs for the rest of the month and is raising money for the Sark Hardship fund.

The exhibition has been curated by Mrs Sarah Beaumont, wife of Seigneur Major Christopher Beaumont, assisted by her family.  The design and creation of each display was managed by Ms Shakira Christodoulou, a member of La Seigneurie household.

"The dresses themselves are beautiful and all quite different," said Mrs Beaumont. "Together they tell a story not only of changing styles and fashions, but also of life on Sark. Each dress was the centrepiece of an especially important occasion within the life of our small island community.

"We’re very grateful to all the brides for lending us something so precious, and so pleased that they have also shared their memories of their wedding days. When you read these alongside the dresses and accessories, and set out in Shakira’s displays, the effect is quite intimate and personal. We hope that visitors will enjoy it and feel that they have shared a bit of Sark life."

The dresses are arranged on specially created mannequins among historic furnishings within the rooms of La Seigneurie.  Ms Christodoulou said each dress provided its own source of inspiration.

"The dresses are fascinating and include a hand-crocheted gown and an authentic silk sari, as well as some beautiful classic designs," she said. "We have the wedding dresses from a Sark mother and daughter, as well as two suits from a Civil Partnership."

Pictured: Ms Christodoulou is a Co-Director of creativesark.info, a group that aims to promote creativity on Sark. [Credit: Creative Sark website]. 

"I found each story fascinating and aimed to display it in a setting that reflected that person.  Some of them took more than one attempt before we felt that we had created something true to that bride."

The exhibition has taken more than five weeks to coordinate, and all proceeds will go to the Sark Hardship Fund, which was established to support Sarkees through the coronavirus pandemic and its ongoing economic effects.

‘Something Borrowed’ will launch at 18:30 today with a drinks reception for the brides and their husbands.  It will open to the public daily between 11:00 – 16:00 from Tuesday 11 August, running until 1 September 2020, with a suggested charitable donation of £10 for adults and £2 for children.

Pictured top: A charity exhibition of Sark wedding dresses will run throughout August in La Seigneurie. Dress lent by Sabrina Burletson, tableau by Shakira Christodoulou, picture by Sibyl Beaumont.