FIDM Museum Blog

Out & About: FIDM Museum goes to Las Vegas

In today's post, Associate Curator Christina Johnson recaps the 39th annual Costume Society of America national symposium. It's not too early to start thinking about the 2014 symposium, which will be held in Baltimore, Maryland. The call for papers will come out soon, so start thinking about possible topics now!

**********

The Costume Society of America’s annual national symposium recently took place in Las Vegas from May 29 to June 1. Curator Kevin Jones, Registrar Meghan Hansen and I attended, and we all had a great time listening to the variety of papers and panels (this year’s theme was “Mining the History of Costume: Fantasy and Fact”) as well as seeing old friends and meeting new ones.

Kevin and I were charged with planning this year’s Silent Auction, a fundraising event for CSA. Members donate books, vintage clothes, and jewelry (my office progressively filled up with boxes in the weeks leading up to the event), and symposium participants then bid on the donated items—the funds raised go toward the educational activities of CSA. Well, we had to get the donations to the Symposium somehow, so we rented a car, and, with barely enough room for one suitcase each, drove four hours across the desert to our oasis at the Tropicana Hotel.

Kevin, Christina and a rental car full of items for the CSA silent auction.

Out & About: Lectures and events

It's been a busy month! As we noted earlier this week on our Facebook page, curators Kevin Jones and Christina Johnson, and registrar Meghan Hansen are currently participating in the Costume Society of America 39th Annual Meeting & National Symposium in Las Vegas, NV. Held every year in late May, this annual symposium is packed with fascinating research presentations. It's also a great opportunity to connect with other people working in the field. If you're on Twitter, you can follow the action by using the hashtag #CSA2013.

On Thursday, May 30, Meghan will present Beyond the Black Cape: Dress in Bram Stoker's Dracula. In this paper, Meghan uses Dracula to explore Victorian anxieties regarding class and etiquette, with special emphasis on the importance of fashionable dress in delineating these categories. You can read an excerpt from an earlier version of Meghan's research here.

Christina will participate in the Scholar's Roundtable on Saturday, June 1. Roundtable participants are selected based on their contributions to dress scholarship, and serve a two-year term. During the annual symposium, members of the roundtable present research highlights, and discuss issues related to furthering the field of dress studies.

In June, you'll have two opportunities to explore fashion history with FIDM Museum staff. On June 8 at 2 pm, curator Kevin Jones will speak at the Fowler Museum at UCLA. Offered in conjunction with the exhibition Resplendent Dress from Southeastern Europe, Kevin's lecture will explore how fringe has been used in both modern and historic dress. More information on this event here.

We're all looking forward to Fashion in the Age of Louis XV on Saturday, June 15. This lecture and demonstration by historian Maxwell Barr will offer an unusual peek inside the wardrobe of an 18th century Parisian woman. Using a live model and historically accurate examples of period clothing, Barr will explore morning, midday, afternoon, and evening dress in the age of Louis XV.

Tickets for this event are $35 per person or $20 for students with ID. Purchase tickets via the FIDM Museum Shop. Fashion in the Age of Louis XV will be held at the Fullerton College Wilshire Auditorium, 321 E. Chapman Avenue, Fullerton, CA 92832.

Video from the Costume Colloquium III

If Christina's recent post describing her experiences at the Costume Colloquium in Florence piqued your curiosity, you're in luck! Videos of all the conference presentations are now available on the Costume Colloquium website. You can watch Christina's presentation, “Doris Langley Moore: Ultimate ‘Woman in Fashion’” here. Find Christina's presentation by clicking on the button reading 9/11/2012; her presentation is the second listed. According to the Costume Colloquium's website, you'll need to view the video using either the Internet Explorer or Chrome browsers.

Pictured below is the c. 1878 wedding gown that started Christina's research on Doris Langley Moore almost 10 years ago! She was first introduced to this princess-line gown by Moore's book, The Woman in Fashion. In 2001, the gown was donated to the FIDM Museum by the Helen Larson Estate. Readers, watch the video of Christina's presentation to see how this wedding gown fits into her research.

Wedding Gown
c. 1878
2001.31.4
Gift of the Helen Larson Estate

Out & About: FIDM Museum at the Costume Colloquium III

Curator Kevin Jones and Associate Curator Christina Johnson recently returned from a conference in Florence, Italy. In today's post, Christina recounts their trip, including museum visits, and highlights from her presentation.

**********

Kevin and I traveled to Florence, Italy, last month for Costume Colloquium III. My paper, “Doris Langley Moore: Ultimate ‘Woman in Fashion’” had been accepted to the bi-annual colloquium. Every other year, the organizers of the Costume Colloquium select a thematic focus and solicit research on the topic; this year’s theme was ‘Past Dress Future Fashion.'

Christina by the Arno River.

I was honored to participate, and so excited to present some of my new research on Doris Langley Moore, a remarkable British woman who was one of the most important costume historians and dealers of the 20^th century. I have been fascinated by her for years; I discovered her 1949 book on the history of fashion, The Woman in Fashion, in high school.

Cover, The Woman in Fashion. This visual exploration of fashion history was published in 1949.

Out & About: FIDM Museum at The Making of a Monarchy for the Modern World conference

 

 

What a busy summer! In early June, we attended the Costume Society of America symposium, which Kevin described in his recent blog post. Immediately after the conference, Kevin and Christina (our curator and associate curator, respectively) flew to London to present research at another conference, The Making of a Monarchy for a Modern World. In today's blog post, Christina takes us to London with a lively, illustrated overview of their trip, including conference details, and museum exhibitions visited. Thanks Christina! We can't wait to hear about your experiences at the upcoming Costume Colloquium in Florence, Italy.

****************************************

Kevin Jones and I flew to London after participating in the Costume Society of America’s Annual Symposium in Atlanta, Georgia. We arrived on June 4—right in the middle of the Diamond Jubilee festivities!

 

Out & About: FIDM Museum at the Costume Society of America National Symposium

 

 

Are you fascinated with the etiquette of 18th century court dress? Do you regale your family and friends with the details of Christian Dior's impact on 20th century fashion? Do your bookshelves groan with the weight of all your fashion books? If this sounds familiar, consider joining the Costume Society of America (CSA), an organization dedicated to promoting the understanding of dress and appearance through scholarship and study. The CSA annual symposium, held in a different North American city each year, is a haven for those of us interested in fashion and fashion history. For three days in late spring, scholars and enthusiasts immerse themselves in all the latest research. This year's conference included a keynote address by Andrew Bolton of The Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, presentations on making a career in dress and textile studies, dressing the macaroni male, the conservation of Voudou ceremonial artifacts and many other areas of dress and textile studies. In this blog post, FIDM Museum curator Kevin Jones recaps CSA presentations and workshops by FIDM Museum staff.

********************************

Staff from the FIDM Museum have been out and about recently, both nationally and internationally. Our first stop was Atlanta, Georgia, for the 38th Annual National Symposium of the Costume Society of America. Not only did we network with colleagues and visit world-class museums, but there was plenty of FIDM Museum participation, too. Study Collection Manager and mount maker Carolyn Jamerson and Social Media Manager Rachel Harris teamed up for a much anticipated 2-hour workshop on the making of archival-quality polyester felt and wire invisible mounts. The 30 participants (and a waiting list of 10 hopefuls) learned the techniques of creating custom-made mounts that can be used for both exhibition and storage. Each attendee received a starter package that included all the supplies and instructions needed, and got to make a miniature corset mount to take home.

Miniature corset mount. Made from felt stiffened by wire supports, this mount invisibly supports a small corset. Read more about how we make invisible mounts here.

Out and about with the FIDM Museum

 

FIDM Museum staff are headed to Atlanta, GA this week for the Costume Society of America National Symposium. Next week, curators Kevin Jones and Christina Johnson will present research at "The Making of a Monarchy for the Modern World" conference in London. In this post, FIDM Museum Registrar Meghan Hansen shares her reflections on a recent symposium sponsored by the Western Region of the Costume Society of America.

FIDM Museum is proud of its association with the Costume Society of America. Our staff has served on the Western Region and National Boards over the years, as well as organized events on-site for the organization. Over St. Patrick’s Day weekend, Museum Registrar Meghan G. Hansen attended the CSA-Western Region Symposium at William S. Hart Ranch and Museum in Santa Clarita, California. 

Western-style shirt worn by William S. Hart in his last movie Tumbleweeds (1925).

 

Event: AdDRESSING Titanic: Appearance & Identity in 1912

 

 

AdDRESSING Titanic: Appearance & Identity in 1912
April 14, 2012
10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

Join FIDM Museum Fashion Council in commemorating the Titanic. 2012 marks the centennial anniversary of the sinking of this luxury oceanliner and we will mark the occasion with AdDRESSING Titanic. The journey will launch with a champagne toast and exquisite sweets and savories. An illustrated lecture by Kevin Jones, FIDM Museum curator, will compare and contrast the sartorial identity of the Titanic's four categories of travelers: First Class, Second Class, Steerage, and Crew. The journey will conclude with highlights of c. 1912 fashions from the Helen Larson Historic Fashion Collection in the Orange County Campus Museum gallery.

Tickets for this event are $100. Purchase tickets for AdDRESSING Titanic by April 1, 2012 via the FIDM Museum Shop. Seating at this event is limited. AdDRESSING Titanic will be held at the FIDM Orange County campus: 17590 Gillette Avenue, Irvine, CA 92614-5610.

 

A trip to the hospital

 

Last week, FIDM Museum staff traveled to Good Samaritan Hospital Los Angeles with precious cargo in tow. The cloth-of-gold court bodice worn by Lady Mary Douglas to the coronation of George III in 1761 had an appointment in Radiology! This extremely rigid bodice is heavily boned with baleen and covered with cloth of gold, a fabric woven with real gold filaments and silk. Silver embroidery and hand-punched sequins depict overflowing cornucopias at the neckline and stylized roses and thistles—all symbols of the British Empire. The bodice is part of the Helen Larson Historic Fashion Collection, which we are currently raising funds to acquire.

Beyond the Black Cape: Dress in Bram Stoker's Dracula

 

As promised, here is an excerpted portion of Meghan's research on Dracula, which she recently presented at Fashion in Fiction: The Dark Side.

********************************************************************

Since its publication in 1897, Bram Stoker’s Dracula has been interpreted in a variety of ways: as a Victorian Gothic novel, vampire lore, and psychoanalytical expression of repressed sexuality. Beyond genre studies and Freudian psychology, Dracula has become a phenomenon in popular culture. Despite its continual adaptation over the last hundred ten years, the twenty-first century reader should note that the novel is truly a window into the many anxieties and transitions of turn-of-the-century England. Prior to 1897, the British Empire had a long history of spreading its power, values, and, not least of all, style of dress around the globe. While France was certainly the world capital of fashion, establishments such as Redfern and Lucile were equally influential in women’s fashions. Moreover, the somber black suit–the hallmark of the British gentleman-had become the uniform in Western menswear by the late nineteenth century, with very little opportunity for individual statements in pattern, color, or cut. Social norms in dress and etiquette were strongly upheld in England, including in literature; as a result, any variation from these norms would immediately set a character apart in the mind of the contemporary reader.

Harper’s Bazar, 21 July 1894, p. 577
FIDM Museum Special Collections