If textiles truly matter in your life and you find yourself in or around Bath at the beginning of November, try not to miss the "Textile Matters" seminar at Bath University (1st November 2013).
Conceived as full immersion into the universe of textiles, the event – presented by the new Textile Research Centre at Bath Spa University’s Corsham Court Campus and organised by Tim Parry-Williams, Senior Lecturer Textiles at Bath School of Art & Design (and a terrific expert on Japanese textiles…) – will feature four main speakers, Anna Jackson, Keeper of the Asian Department, Victoria & Albert Museum; Frances Pritchard, Curator (Textiles), Whitworth Art Gallery; Mary Schoeser, Textile historian, curator and writer, and Christina Leitner, Creative Director, Textile Centre Haslach, Austria.
The event will look at the historical, cultural and social importance of both public and private collections of textiles. Some of the textiles analysed may have survived the passage of time in better ways than others that are barely there, but all of them have important meanings and provide great technical insights and inspirations.
Textiles could also be interpreted as a way to explore the world and travel around the globe (think about the textile trade…), or as journey of discovery through the different producers and manufacturers or through other segments of textile work including weaving, tapestry making and embroidery.
Hopefully, apart from tackling issues such as conservation, care and display, the curators involved will also look at the current obsession of the fashion industry with certain types of prints and patterns or with designs that, employing various textiles and prints, literally cross the borders of nations, ending up being mixes and combinations of traditional costumes from different countries.
It will be particularly interesting to hear the views of the Whitworth Art Gallery curator: founded in 1889, this institution was created to inspire the textile industry around the Manchester area, while instructing students and artists about the visual arts.
The gallery is still the largest and most comprehensive collection of textiles in the UK outside London (it's second only to the V&A) and the collection features pieces from ancient Egypt, European textiles from the 15th to the 18th century, Mediterranean and Islamic embroideries, and the works of William Morris.
One of the most important points of many galleries focusing on textiles (and in particular of the Whitworth Art Gallery) is the access to the stored collections: at the Whitworth for example school groups and academic researchers can have access to and study the archives.
The tickets (full rate £45 / Students (NUS registered) £20) for the Bath symposia are on sale until 29 October. For further information you can contact Adele Milton, Bath School of Art & Design, Reception, at the phone number 01225-875533, or email: a.milton@bathspa.ac.uk
TextileMatters: Collections: A Bath School of Art & Design, Textile Research Centre Symposia, 10–4 | Bath Spa University, Corsham Court Campus, Corsham, Wiltshire SN13 OBZ, UK.
Images
1. Pattern books (furnishings), cotton/silk, Vienna/Austria, producer unknown, about C.1880, (c) Textiles Zentrum Haslach
2. Bed cloths, natural and blue-dyed hand-spun linen, plain weave, weaver unknown, Mühlviertel district/Austria, about C.1900, (c) Leinenweberei Vieböck, Helfenberg, Austria
3. Flora, Burne-Jones & Morris c.1885, (c) Whitworth Art Gallery
4. Detail of the table cloth "Jägers Hochzeit" ("Marriage of a huntsman"), linen/cotton, weaver: Wenzel Gerätschläger, St. Stefan bei Haslach/Austria, about C.1930, (c) Textiles Zentrum Haslach
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