This book has evolved over several years of working closely with a wide range of public and private collections of clothing and uses my skills as a fashion designer and textile conservator to fnd convincing and innovative ways of displaying dress and textiles. Three-dimensional displays of garments intended to be worn in a particular manner and on physiques that are very diferent to modern ones can be challenging for even the most experienced curators and conservators. Transforming tired, fat garments into memorable displays of fashionable dress is not easy but this book ofers techniques for this transformative process. Displaying dress is a complex skill that uses curatorial and conservation methods with some elements of theatre.
The history of any garment and its place within social hierarchies is as much a part of the image, and thus presentation of the dress as its construction and manufacture. Research into all these aspects is an essential starting point for preparing a support for any garment and a successful display will need to address all of these issues. This book, therefore, offers an object-based approach to garment display involving detailed investigation of cut and construction alongside the discovery of how fabrics can be manipulated to create garment shapes. Every garment has its display needs hidden within its construction and the aim of this book is to highlight the language and skills needed to unlock its secrets and create a unique display form.
No book can hope to discuss every aspect of interpretation and presentation of the many types of clothing that survive in public and private collections. Fortunately, most material is post-1720 in date, but three hundred years of changing fashions and attitudes to physical perfection provide many challenges when devising the best possible display – however large or small. The explanations in this book concentrate on female fashion up to c. 1950. After this date garment styles become ever more diverse and the scale of information needed to address each one of them is beyond the scope of this book. However, all of the techniques described are applicable to garments of any date and, by following the processes explained, a successful display can be achieved.
Menswear is not discussed but, where a process can be applied to the display of male garments, reference is made in the text. Consideration is given to differing levels of skill, availability of materials and, crucially, the budget required to achieve the desired results. Ingenuity is helpful and even with a small budget, skilled hands can achieve wonders, especially if the exhibition designer involved recognizes the primacy of curatorial and conservation skills and is fully committed to working together to achieve their vision. This book is intended to demystify the methods behind the preparation and installation of memorable displays of dress and textiles and allow everyone who works with collections to create the best possible results.
The content is arranged in two parts. Chapters 1-4 consider the necessary background, the interpretation of the material to be presented. These chapters focus on assessing a chosen garment and identifying its date and construction with storyboards providing resource material to inform the making process that follows. The bibliography suggests recommended books and websites that offer sound background information. The pattern diagrams are not taken from the specific garments seen in the accompanying photographs but are generic, showing the type of pattern pieces a dressmaker at the time would have recognized when creating contemporaneous garments.
Chapters 5-10 look at the actual processes that will help you achieve a memorable and accurate display of fashionable clothing of whatever date. Instructions for taking measurements, selection or adaptation of display figures, the making of toiles to protect delicate garments and inform good display results, and the making of underpinnings and arms to support skirts and sleeves are all explained in detail.
All of this information is discussed alongside carefully selected images or specially commissioned drawings and photographs to give an insight into the transformation of a flat garment into a three-dimensional display figure. Every step from box to display case is analysed and illustrated.
The process explained is not the only one used for displaying garments but it is a tested method developed over twenty years displaying dress in museums, which addresses all of the above in a format that is achievable for people with differing levels of skill and experience.
