“A Collection that counts”: The History, Practice and Future of Textile Collecting

press release: Why do people collect textiles? How do they collect them? And what does it mean to ‘collect’? Join us to explore these questions and more during a symposium hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Center for Design and Material Culture in the School of Human Ecology in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection.

The symposium will explore:

• the history of textile collecting, especially as an arena for women’s collecting;
• the varied motivations of contemporary textile collectors;
• practical aspects of collection care and display;
• the dissemination of textile collections, through exhibitions, events, or inheritance;
• the future of collecting, for example as a digital rather than material practice.

When: Saturday April 6 2019

• Registration opens at 8:30 am
• Keynote speaker at 9:00 am

Where: Nancy Nicholas Hall, School of Human Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Event is $35 per person – includes a $10 tax-deductible contribution to the annual fund.

Symposium Schedule:

9:00 am:   Special Guest Speaker: Susan Gloss

Join us first thing for a cup of coffee and “book club” to get the conversation started! Our keynote speaker will be Susan Gloss, local author of Vintage, a novel set in and around a vintage clothing store in Madison, and The Curiosities, about an artist colony in Madison endowed by a philanthropist who was also an avid collector of clothing. Come and hear excerpts from the novels and Susan’s thoughts about what it meant for her characters to be collectors.

Session 1: ‘The acquiring of many new friends’: Motivations for Collecting Textiles

Beverly Gordon, artist and professor emerita of textile and design history, will discuss the history of textile collecting in the early 20th century, especially as a pursuit for women. Beverly’s talk will be followed by a panel discussion of contemporary collectors sharing their varied motivations for collecting today.

Session II: ‘the sorting and arranging’: Preserving Personal and Family Collections

Edward Maeder, consultant in historic dress and textiles, will discuss his work preserving and curating the Roddis Family Dress Collection, comprised of clothing from one family, spanning the years 1850-1995. This case study will lead into a panel discussion of curators and conservators offering their advice on the organization and preservation of textiles within the home. Joining the panel is David Wells, Director of the Edgewood College Gallery & Ernest Hüpeden’s Painted Forest.

Session III: ‘showing the collection’: New Modes of Collecting and Display

This session will focus on the uses of digital technology to display physical collections and curate virtual ones. Caleb Sayan, the co-founder of Textile Hive, will discuss an electronic platform for the preservation and dissemination of textile knowledge. Amanda Sikarskie, a fashion historian with a particular interest in methods of textile history in the digital age, will speak on how users have made use of electronic image platforms to “curate” visual collections of textiles.

In 2019, the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Human Ecology launched a yearlong anniversary celebration of the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection. Over the past half century, the collection has grown from an original 4,000-piece gift to more than 13,000 objects that have inspired and informed thousands of students, researchers, historians, and textile aficionados. The 50-year celebration began on January 27, 2019, with the opening of new Lynn Mecklenburg Textile Gallery, a space dedicated to year-round displays of the collections. Activities continue into 2019 with a calendar of public exhibitions, symposia, lectures, and public workshops.