The Design Center’s Textile Collection houses over 200,000 items that reflect a broad spectrum of techniques, designs, cultures and historic periods. The collection features 2,000 year old Egyptian Coptic fragments; Pre-Colombian woven and printed textiles; elaborate European silk embroideries and brocades; Kashmir and Paisley shawls; 18th and 19th century quilts and coverlets; hand-and machine-made laces; 19th and early 20th century Chinese imperial court robes and Japanese kimonos; American and European garments, undergarments, and children’s wear from the 18th to 21st centuries; and designer clothing from the Victorian era to the present. Traditional costumes from around the world are also represented, as are a wide range of clothing accessories from stockings, shoes, hats, and gloves to parasols, beaded bags, and fans.
The collection documents the entire American textile industry, but more particularly it chronicles the history of the textile industry of Philadelphia that was one of the most diverse in the nation. Textile artifacts -- including spinning and weaving implements, machinery, technology and dye books, more than 100 swatch books, and several hundred thousand swatch cards -- tell the story of American textile manufacturing from 1780s to the present.
Recognizing the world-wide importance and significance of textiles and textile manufacturing, The Design Center’s Textile Collection continues to grow, acquiring selective donations by the faculty, the general public and industry. By providing a balance of local color, historic significance and international flavor the collection serves as an inspirational and primary resource for fashion aficionados, designers, scholars, historians, librarians, teachers and students.
|