Baskets made of baleen, the fibrous substance found in the mouths of plankton-eating whales-a malleable and durable material that once had commercial uses equivalent to those of plastics today-were first created by Alaska Natives in the early years of the twentieth century. Because they were made for the tourist trade, they were initially disdained by scholars and collectors, but today they have joined other art forms as a highly prized symbol of native identity. Baskets of exquisite workmanship, often topped with fanciful ivory carvings, have been created for almost a century, contributing significantly to the livelihood of their makers in the Arctic villages of Barrow, Point Hope, Wainwright, and Point Lay, Alaska. Baleen Basketry of the North Alaskan Eskimo, originally published in 1983, was the first book on this unusual basket form. In this completely redesigned edition, it remains the most informative work on baleen baskets, covering their history, characteristics, and construction, as well as profiling their makers. Illustrations of the basketmakers at work and line drawings showing the methods of construction are a charming addition to this book, which belongs in the library of all those with an interest in the art of basketry and in Alaskan Native arts in general.

For centuries the Huichol (Wixárika) Indian women of Jalisco, Mexico, have been weaving textiles on backstrap looms. This West Mexican tradition has been passed down from mothers to daughters since pre-Columbian times. Weaving is a part of each woman’s identity—allowing them to express their ancient religious beliefs as well as to reflect the personal transformations they have undergone throughout their lives. In this book anthropologist Stacy B. Schaefer explores the technology of weaving and the spiritual and emotional meaning it holds for the women with whom she works and within their communities, which she experienced during her apprenticeship with master weavers in Wixárika families. She takes us on a dynamic journey into a realm of ancient beliefs and traditions under threat from the outside world in this fascinating ethnographic study.

Este libro, es la primera recopilacion de cronicas escritas por el artista y autor Alex Ceball sobre moda, arte y diseno de productos, contenidas en el blog FASHION COOLHUNTING, con el cual se convirtio en el primer "Fashion Blogger" en lengua castellana, un fenomeno que hasta nuestros dias, se disparo con asombrosa rapidez convirtiendolos en lideres de opinion y al autor, en uno de los nombres fundamentales para entender la historia reciente de la moda iberoamericana y del resto del mundo. Junto al universo de la moda y las tendencias, el autor saca, en cada uno de sus articulos, un relato de su propia epoca paseando al lector por temas sociales, politicos y filosoficos de un sinnumero de areas y temas, tranformando su escritura en un autentico relato de los sucesos y nombres esenciales de la epoca contemporanea en un tono directo y sin pelos en la lengua, con el cual ha ganado casi dos millones de lectores y el reconocimiento internacional. En ese mundo cambiante, el autor revela y describe los entresijos desde los pasillos de las casas de alta costura a los de palacios de gobierno, y al mismo tiempo, el mundo real de la calle para entregar al lector una impresion general y personal de eso, un mundo cambiante, como la moda. FASHION COOLHUNTING.

The ULTIMATE Guide for people who want to be a fashion model. the Instead of false impressions of fame and fortune, this book will give you the reality of the hard work that you have to do in order to become a model, and what kind of requirements that you have to meet. There are many different levels, paths and types of modeling introduced in this book so you can choose the best one for you. You are also given the important requirements that you have to meet in order to be a model, as well as some additional tools that can help you through the process. There are instructions on how to achieve success with your modeling career and how to protect yourself from scams. If your dream is to become a successful model then this is the book for you. The information provided within the pages of "How to Become a Model" will help you to establish your modeling career path and for you to eventually realise your dream of having a career as a successful model

In this beautifully illustrated book, textile expert Elena Phipps examines the ancient Peruvian process of weaving textiles with four finished selvages, or edges. Without cutting a thread, master Peruvian weavers wove each textile to the specifications of its intended use, whether a child's garment, royal mantle, or ritual cloth. This weaving technique required the highest level of skill and forethought and reflects a high cultural value placed on maintaining the integrity of cloth--not only its design and function but also the very way in which it was constructed. The resultant textiles have long been admired for their mastery of color, technique, and design.

While exploring the origins and development of this approach to weaving, Phipps also examines its influence on three contemporary artists (Sheila Hicks, James Bassler, and John Cohen), all of whom have considered ancient Peruvian weaving processes in their own work.

Elena Phipps is the author of "Cochineal Red: The Art History of a Color" and "Looking at Textiles: A Guide to Technical Terminology."

This collection of fifteen papers ranges from the author's initial interest in the Tapestry as a source of information on early medieval dress, through to her startling recognition of the embroidery's sophisticated narrative structure. Developing the work of previous authors who had identified graphic models for some of the images, she argues that not just the images themselves but the contexts from which they were drawn should be taken in to account in 'reading' the messages of the Tapestry. In further investigating the minds and hands behind this, the largest non-architectural artefact surviving from the Middle Ages, she ranges over the seams, the embroidery stitches, the language and artistry of the inscription, the potential significance of borders and the gestures of the figures in the main register, always scrutinising detail informatively. She identifies an over-riding conception and house style in the Tapestry, but also sees different hands at work in both needlecraft and graphics. Most intriguingly, she recognises an sub-contractor with a Roman source and a clownish wit. The author is Professor of Anglo-Saxon Culture at The University of Manchester, UK, a specialist in Old English poetry, Anglo-Saxon material culture and medieval dress and textiles.

Macedonian ethnic dress is full of meaning and significance. It is visually stunning and embodies the skills, expectations, hopes and fears, creative use of materials, and aesthetic sense of the individuals who made and wore it. Saturated with cultural meaning, these many-layered ensembles rank among the best examples of textile art anywhere. This landmark catalog brings together scholarship by Macedonian experts with a museum collection in the United States and outstanding photography to present treasures of Macedonian dress from 1880 to 1950. Essays on embroidery, materials of dress, techniques of production, and hair dressing illuminate the complexities that existed in this small country at the crossroads of civilizations. The legacy of Macedonian women's hands and minds will live on in this volume for future generations to admire.

The first in the four-part series "Habits of Being," charting the social, cultural, and political expression of clothing as seen on the street and in museums, in films and literature, and in advertisements and magazines, this volume features a close-up focus on accessories--the shoe, the hat, the necklace--intimately connected to the body.
These essays, most of which have appeared in the cutting-edge Italian series "Abito e Identita," offer new theoretical and historical takes on the role of clothing, dress, and accessories in the construction of the modern subject. With contributions by leading scholars in art history, semiotics, literary and film studies, history and fashion studies, and with additional writings by psychoanalysts, textile artists, and fashion designers from Europe and America, readers will encounter a dizzying array of ideas about the modern body and the ways in which we dress it.
From perspectives on the "model body" to Sonia Delaunay's designs, from Fascist-era Spanish women's prescribed ways of dressing to Futurist vests, from Barbara Stanwyck's anklet to Salvatore Ferragamo's sandals, from a poet's tiara to a worker's cap, from the scarlet letter to the yellow star: "Accessorizing the Body" imparts startling insights into how much the most modest accessory might reveal.
Contributors: Zsofia Ban, Eotvos Lorand U, Budapest; Martha Banta, U of California, Los Angeles; Vittoria C. Caratozzolo, U of Rome "La Sapienza"; Paola Colaiacomo, U of Rome "La Sapienza"; Maria Damon, U of Minnesota; Giuliana Di Febo, U of Rome Three; Micol Fontana; Manuela Fraire; Becky Peterson, U of New Mexico; Jeffrey C. Stewart, U of California, Santa Barbara; Vito Zagarrio, U of Rome Three; Franca Zoccoli.

"Marseille: The Cradle of White Corded Quilting," which accompanies an exhibition of the same name, traces the origins and the commercial development of "broderie de Marseille" needlework. During the seventeenth century these supple, all-white corded and quilted furnishings--from bedcovers to quilted bodices and caps--grew out of the thriving textile trade centered on France's Mediterranean port of Marseille as adaptations of popular foreign textile products. "Broderie de Marseille" is a form of three-dimensional textile sculpture using plain white cloth and white cotton cording, deftly manipulated with needle and thread to reveal patterns highlighted by the resulting play of light and shadow on the textile surface. Skillful execution of "broderie de Marseille" resulted in delicate, refined work that graced the homes and figures of aristocrats and launched a worldwide passion for all-white corded needlework. The quilted works were filled with imagery expressing contemporary cultural values, such as folk legends, heraldic devices and royal monograms (bedcovers), and floral wreaths and fruits symbolizing good fortune and fertility (wedding quilts). Contemporary versions, today often referred to commercially as "matelasse," are machine made and thus lack the personal skills and intimate connections to the work represented by the confections of the original needleworkers. In this richly illustrated monograph Kathryn Berenson has exhaustively researched the fascinating story through a broad range of historical records, including household inventories, letters, commercial documents, and literary references.

Contemporary artist Allison Smith's diverse creative practice critically engages with popular forms of historical reenactment through a variety of media, including sculpture, textiles, ceramics, and photography. Focusing on the handmade and performative aspects of history and material culture, Smith re-stages, refigures, and replays the role of traditional crafts in large-scale installations that reconsider the construction of collective memory and identity. For the core of Allison Smith: Needle Work, the artist created contemporary revisions of European and American gas masks from World War I and World War II. Smith used art supplies found at local fabric and craft retail stores to explore a range of masklike forms - from the ghoulish to the foolish - thereby questioning essential notions of camouflage and masquerade. This exhibition catalog, illustrated throughout in color, includes an essay that considers Smith's project in light of Peter Sloterdijk's "Terror from the Air", as well as in-depth interviews with the artist and the curator.

From booties and scarves to art and fashion, "The Culture of Knitting" addresses knitting since 1970. Investigating knitting as art, craft, design, fashion, performance and as an aspect of the everyday, the text uncovers the cultural significance of knitting. Drawing on a variety of sources, including interviews with knitters from different disciplines as well as amateurs, the text breaks down hierarchical boundaries and stereotypical assumptions that have hitherto negated the academic study of knitting, and it highlights the diversity and complexity of knitting in all its guises. "The Culture of Knitting" investigates not merely why knitting is so popular now, but the reasons why knitting has such longevity. By assessing the literature of knitting, manuals, patterns, social and regional histories, alongside testimonial discussions with artists, designers, craftspeople and amateurs, it offers new ways of seeing, new methods of critiquing knitting, without the constraints of disciplinary boundaries in the hope of creating an environment in which knitting can be valued, recognized and discussed.

Every Persian carpet has a story to tell -- from the remote villages of Afghanistan and Iran, down the ancient trade routes traveled for centuries, to the bazaars of Tehran and the markets of the Western world. Carpet-making is one of this tumultuous region's few constants, an art form that transcends religious and political turmoil. Part travelogue and part exploration into the meaning and worth of these mystical artifacts, "The Root of Wild Madder" presents practical information about carpets while exploring the artistic, religious, and cultural complexities of these enigmatic lands.

Spanning the backs of choir stalls above the heads of the canons and their officials, large-scale tapestries of saints' lives functioned as both architectural elements and pictorial narratives in the late Middle Ages. In an extensively illustrated book that features sixteen color plates, Laura Weigert examines the role of these tapestries in ritual performances. She situates individual tapestries within their architectural and ceremonial settings, arguing that the tapestries contributed to a process of storytelling in which the clerical elite of late medieval cities legitimated and defended their position in the social sphere. Weigert focuses on three of the most spectacular and little-studied tapestry series preserved from the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries: Lives of Saints Piat and Eleutherius (Notre-Dame, Tournai), Life of Saint Steven (Saint-Steven, Auxerre [now Musee du Moyen Age, Paris]), and Life of Saints Gervasius and Protasius (Saint-Julien, Le Mans). Each of these tapestries, measuring over forty meters in length, included elements that have traditionally been defined as either lay or clerical. On the prescribed days when the tapestries were displayed, the liturgical performance for which they were the setting sought to merge the history and patron saint of the local community with the universal history of the Christian church. Weigert combines a detailed analysis of the narrative structure of individual images with a discussion of the particular social circumstances in which they were produced and perceived. Weaving Sacred Stories is thereby significant not only to the history of medieval art but also to art history and cultural studies in general.

Exquisite blankets, sarapes and ponchos handwoven by southwestern peoples are admired throughout the world. Despite many popularized accounts, serious gaps have existed in our understanding of these textiles--gaps that one man devoted years of scholarly attention to address.

During much of his career, anthropologist Joe Ben Wheat (1916-1997) earned a reputation as a preeminent authority on southwestern and plains prehistory. Beginning in 1972, he turned his scientific methods and considerable talents to historical questions as well. He visited dozens of museums to study thousands of nineteenth-century textiles, oversaw chemical tests of dyes from hundreds of yarns, and sought out obscure archives to research the material and documentary basis for textile development. His goal was to establish a key for southwestern textile identification based on the traits that distinguish the Pueblo, Navajo, and Spanish American blanket weaving traditions--and thereby provide a better way of identifying and dating pieces of unknown origin.

Wheat's years of research resulted in a masterful classification scheme for southwestern textiles--and a book that establishes an essential baseline for understanding craft production. Nearly completed before Wheat's death, "Blanket Weaving in the Southwest" describes the evolution of southwestern textiles from the early historic period to the late nineteenth century, establishes a revised chronology for its development, and traces significant changes in materials, techniques, and designs.

Wheat first relates what Spanish observers learned about the state of native weaving in the region--a historical review that reveals the impact of new technologies andeconomies on a traditional craft. Subsequent chapters deal with fibers, yarns, dyes, and fabric structures--including an unprecedented examination of the nature, variety, and origins of bayeta yarns--and with tools, weaves, and finishing techniques.

A final chapter, constructed by editor Ann Hedlund from Wheat's notes, provides clues to his evolving ideas about the development of textile design. Hedlund--herself a respected textile scholar and a protA(c)gA(c)e of Wheat's--is uniquely qualified to interpret the many notes he left behind and brings her own understanding of weaving to every facet of the text. She has ensured that Wheat's research is applicable to the needs of scholars, collectors, and general readers alike. Throughout the text, Wheat discusses and evaluates the distinct traits of the three textile traditions. More than 200 photos demonstrate these features, including 191 color plates depicting a vast array of chief blankets, shoulder blankets, ponchos, sarapes, diyugi, mantas, and dresses from museum collections nationwide. In addition, dozens of line drawings demonstrate the fine points of technique concerning weaves, edge finishes, and corner tassels. Through his groundbreaking and painstaking research, Wheat created a new view of southwestern textile history that goes beyond any other book on the subject. "Blanket Weaving in the Southwest" addresses a host of unresolved issues in textile research and provides critical tools for resolving them. It is an essential resource for anyone who appreciates the intricacy of these outstanding creations.

Textiles are central to our lives and are at the heart of the world's largest industries. In recent years there has been a dynamic shift in attitudes toward textiles, fuelled in part by explosive developments in technology. While textiles have always retained roots in craft and industry, the discipline now embraces a much wider range of practices. Innovations in the industry demand a fresh approach to the subject, which this comprehensive introduction ably supplies. Taking as their starting point the very meaning of textiles, Gale and Kaur go on to show the astonishing range of opportunities for careers in the field, from the creative (artists, craftspeople and designers) to the social and industrial, to the commercial and associated practices (buyers, journalists, researchers and scientists). The Textile Book takes us behind the scenes with professionals to reveal what various jobs involve, what influences decision makers, and how their decisions affect what we buy next season. What happens to clothes before they reach the shops? What determines the 'must have' item? How can recycled bottles be transformed into silk-like yarns? These and many other questions are explored to show the diversity that makes up the contemporary global textile scene. Woven, printed, embroidered, knitted -- textiles are pivotal to the everyday experience of people in all parts of the world. This wide-ranging and informative book conveys the excitement and new challenges textiles represent and is essential reading for anyone working with, studying or simply interested in textiles.

Baskets made of baleen, the fibrous substance found in the mouths of plankton-eating whales-a malleable and durable material that once had commercial uses equivalent to those of plastics today-were first created by Alaska Natives in the early years of the twentieth century. Because they were made for the tourist trade, they were initially disdained by scholars and collectors, but today they have joined other art forms as a highly prized symbol of native identity. Baskets of exquisite workmanship, often topped with fanciful ivory carvings, have been created for almost a century, contributing significantly to the livelihood of their makers in the Arctic villages of Barrow, Point Hope, Wainwright, and Point Lay, Alaska. Baleen Basketry of the North Alaskan Eskimo, originally published in 1983, was the first book on this unusual basket form. In this completely redesigned edition, it remains the most informative work on baleen baskets, covering their history, characteristics, and construction, as well as profiling their makers. Illustrations of the basketmakers at work and line drawings showing the methods of construction are a charming addition to this book, which belongs in the library of all those with an interest in the art of basketry and in Alaskan Native arts in general.

Classic Tailoring Techniques: A Construction Guide for Women's Wear presents detailed, precise construction techniques for both basic jackets and skirts and more complex variants, walking students through every step of the process: tailoring fundamentals, preparing a pattern, fitting, selecting fabric, layout, cutting, and altering. Photographs, diagrams, and step-by-step instructions guide introductory and intermediate level students with a background in design, patternmaking, and sewing through timeless techniques for custom hand tailoring production.

This book brings together seventeen important new papers published by Anna Muthesius since 1995. Many of the articles, plates and specially prepared figures are available only in this book. The volume acts as an essential companion to Dr Muthesius' earlier book in this series, Studies in Byzantine and Islamic Silk Weaving. The present book includes a group of seven papers (Studies II-VI, X, and XIV) originally entitled 'Silk in Byzantium'. These were prepared in the first instance for a seminar held in 1997 in Nicosia at the University of Cyprus. They offer an overall survey of Byzantine sericulture, silk manufacture, design, use and distribution. Study I has been added as an introduction to the Cyprus series, and to the book as a whole. Silk in an ecclesiastical context (the relationship between Imperial and monastic piety, ritual and Christological debate) forms the focus for a further five papers (Studies VIII-IX and XI-XIII). Study VIII acts to introduce a new subject, the theme of Byzantine Seafaring silks. The final three articles (Studies XV-XVII) explore the immense impact of Byzantine silks abroad between the fifth and fifteenth centuries, in regions as far apart as the British Isles and Central Asia.

An exquisite and authoritative look at four centuries of quilts and quilting from around the world Quilts are among the most utilitarian of art objects, yet the best among them possess a formal beauty that rivals anything made on canvas. This landmark book, drawn from the world-renowned collection of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, highlights the splendor and craft of quilts with more than 300 superb color images and details. Fascinating essays by two noted scholars trace the evolution of quilting styles and trends as they relate to the social, political, and economic issues of their time. The collection includes quilts made by diverse religious and cultural groups over 400 years and across continents, from the Mediterranean, England, France, America, and Polynesia. The earliest quilts were made in India and the Mediterranean for export to the west and date to the late 16th century. Examples from 18th- to 20th-century America, many made by Amish and African-American quilters, reflect the multicultural nature of American society and include boldly colored and patterned worsteds and brilliant pieced and appliqued works of art. Grand in scope and handsomely produced, Four Centuries of Quilts: The Colonial Williamsburg Collection is sure to be one of the most useful and beloved references on quilts and quilting for years to come. Published in association with the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation Exhibition Schedule: Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg (06/07/14-May 2016)