Bold Impressions: block printing 1910-1950

An edited extract from the illustrated brochure produced to accompany a touring exhibition curated by Mary Schoeser for Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design, shown in the Lethaby Gallery, Southampton Row, from October 3rd to 31st, 1995, and at ten subsequent venues until June 1997

The Design, Production and Consumption of Scottish Turkey Red Textiles

Mary Schoeser jointly curated this exhibition celebrating the exotic Turkey red textiles that were produced in the West of Scotland from the 1780’s until the mid 20th Century, which dominated this sector of the world market. Schoeser's contribution focussed on the technical innovation by the Glasgow manufacturers in the complex dyeing process, determining how designs originally produced for South East Asia were adapted for the home and American markets and developing a practice-based analysis of the colourways, pattern repeat, weight and weave of the historical designs which were digitally reproduced for the exhibition. This study draws upon an overlooked but internationally significant archive in the National Museum of Scotland. This resource relates to other significant holdings in the Glasgow University Business Records Centre, Glasgow Museums, Glasgow School of Art Institutional Archive and the V&A. The project builds on the initiative, by Liz Arthur and Nasreen Askari, of the project ‘Uncut Cloth’ with Paisley Museum and Art Gallery supported by the Scottish Arts Council Lottery Fund and extends the work begun by the Turkey Red Trust with the local community in the Vale of Leven. The whole Scottish textile industry is under-researched and what little has been done fails to address in any depth the range of variables in the design process and manufacture and how these relate to the wider patterns of marketing and use. The effect of cultural transfer through Scots emigrants in the Eastern United States, particularly the Quaker connections between the west of Scotland, Philadelphia and Delaware, is significant

Silk

This gorgeously illustrated volume not only offers a tour through the fascinating history of silk but also a glimpse into the future, when imaginative designers and textile producers will be changing the boundaries of what is possible with this extraordinary material. Textile expert Mary Schoeser presents an authoritative account of the development of silk, its properties and practical uses, and its role in some of the greatest achievements in the history of fashion design. Silk is magical. Made by worms, it is able to absorb up to thirty times its weight in water, it is warmer than wool, and it is unsurpassed for beauty and touch. Schoeser focuses keen attention on silk’s evolution as a symbol of status and substance, then traces its central function in 19th- and 20th-century glamour, expressed through the work of designers from Christian Dior to Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga to Emmanuel Ungaro. Schoeser also examines the innovative use of silk by today’s cutting-edge designers, among them Alexander McQueen, Issey Miyake, and John Galliano of Dior. She concludes with a detailed investigation of new silk technologies and how they continue to extend both the physical properties of silk and the possibilities for creative design

Work by Neil Bottle

Textile expert Mary Schoeser presents an authoritative account of the development of silk, its properties and practical uses, and its role in some of the greatest achievements in the history of fashion design. This book includes several works by the artist Neil Bottle. Page 187 two designs developed on a computer in 2005. Page 192 shows a selection of ties colored using a combination of screens and stencils as well as hand painting. The final work is on page 228, a hand painted silk panel

Fashion's Memory

'Fashion's Memory' was an analysis of the work of the German artist/designer/ethnographer Max Tilke. The exhibition explored the continuing cross-cultural use of basic clothing shapes. Tilke was investigating the cut of ethnographic garments at the beginning of the twentieth century and published several books on the subject. My research into his work led to a collaboration with Schoeser and Stabb that resulted in exhibitions at the Lethaby Gallery and at the University of California Davis. Tilke’s books have been an important influence on fashion design (Zandra Rhodes used his patterns for her early collections), on contemporary wearable art and on theatrical costume design. My research into the background of Tilke and his work led me to find his original, still uncatalogued, research drawings and the finished drawings, which were used for his books in the archives at the Lipperheidesche Kostümbibliothek in Berlin. This exhibition was the first time that some of these important drawings were made public