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Careful storage and handling is key to the preservation of any museum collection. In this post, Christina Johnson discusses how garments, textiles and accessories can be harmed by inappropriate storage materials. Before recently taking on the position of Associate Curator, Christina Johnson was the FIDM Museum Collections Manager for seven years.The FIDM Museum Conservation Collection Read More »
Dani Killam, Assistant Registrar, wrote this post about the process of packing an exhibit for shipment to another museum. To read more about how we organize and prep for this process, read our recent post Traveling in High Style.“It’s a puzzle!” This phrase is often used in the FIDM Museum office when talking about organizing Read More »
Have you ever wondered how a complete exhibition gets from one museum to another? In this post, FIDM Museum Registrar Meghan Grossman Hansen fills you in on the process.This month, the FIDM Museum’s award-winning exhibition High Style: Betsy Bloomingdale and the Haute Couture is hitting the road. A slightly modified version of the exhibition will Read More »
Regular readers of this blog have probably noticed the variety of forms we use to display objects from the FIDM Museum collection. When we photograph an object for in-house documentary purposes, it's usually dressed on a headless dress form or mannequin. For exhibition and/or publication, we go all out, pairing garments with contemporaneous accessories (shoes, Read More »
Color and pattern are usually the first aspects of a garment to catch the eye, closely followed by silhouette. But what about texture? Though texture might not be the first thing we notice, it plays an important role in establishing the mood of a garment. Would a roughly woven cotton textile be appropriate for a Read More »
Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, young boys and girls were often dressed in sailor suits. Worn as both school uniforms and everyday dress, the popularity of the style was sparked by this 1846 Winterhalter portrait of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales. About 5 years old when the portrait was painted, Albert Edward wears a scaled Read More »
Combining utility and beauty, chatelaines were a form of functional jewelry worn hanging at the waist. Comprising a hook and multiple dangling chains attached to small, useful objects (scissors, writing utensils, keys, purse, watch, perfume vial, etc.) chatelaines were hooked to a sash, belt or waistband. Visible storage worked in intricate designs of silver, enamel Read More »
In the early 20th century, women who chose to wear bifurcated garments (i.e. trousers) outside of the gymnasium or off the playing field risked public censure. Though women had been wearing full, almost skirt-like trousers for sporting activities since the late 19th century, these bifurcated garments escaped condemnation only because they were functional, not fashionable. Read More »
Pelerine1855-60 Gift of Steven Porterfield 2007.897.13 Read More »
One of the best aspects of working in a museum is the constant discoveries we make about our objects. In addition to preserving and protecting the objects in our care, we also spend a lot of time researching objects in our collection. Each object embodies a specific narrative, and it's our job to document and Read More »
Minidress Rudi Gernreich 1967-68 Bequest of the Rudi Gernreich Estate G85.331.1 Rudi Gernreich is probably best known for his most provocative creations, such as the monokini or this military ensemble. Though Gernreich was definitely interested in pushing fashion boundaries, some of his more light-hearted designs indicate an interest in non-Western dress. A specific focus on Read More »
Heather Vaughan, of the dress studies blog Worn Through, interviewed our very own Christina Johnson about the process of moving our collection into compact storage. This was a HUGE project that took place over several months in 2008. You can read Christina's account of the move and see before/after photos of our storage facilities here. Read More »
