I love edgy 20th century block prints of traditional Japanese subjects, like this print Two Maiko by Sekino Jun’ichirō. He uses the regimented trappings of a maiko’s (apprentice geisha) appearance abstractly, placing the young women in juxtaposition to each other. You … Continue reading
My personal research focuses on the dress of indentured and enslaved servant women from 1750-1790. While I was in DC for work recently, I was able to slip over to the Library of Congress for a couple of hours and … Continue reading
Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum/State Museum of Archaeology is a long official title, so the concern has been dubbed Jef Pat Park for those of us who reference it with any regularity. Recently, in a thread on the At … Continue reading
Eddie Izzard puns on the Church of England: “Cake or Death?” For people found guilty of committing small crimes in England, transportation to the American colonies for seven to fourteen years of bound servitude was the cake option. Overcrowding in England’s … Continue reading
It was the 1850s. Skirts were big. Transportation, not so much. Prior to elevated railways, streetcars, and subways, mass transit meant the omnibus, a horse-drawn wagon, often enclosed. Crinolines (hoop skirts) gave lampoonists of the mid-19th century ample tongue-wagging material. … Continue reading
I’ve been studying the design and production of 18th century printed textiles as produced for the masses. Printed fabrics became increasingly popular throughout the 18th century, especially as technological advances in spinning, weaving, and printing gradually made printed cotton textiles … Continue reading
Historical research is like sketching. You begin with a few pieces of data, allowing you to make some bold strokes on a piece of white paper. You identify what sorts of primary resources will improve that image, and it redirects … Continue reading
When I was a Collection Care Specialist at the MFA boston, I was beginning the study of late eighteenth century dress. I knew that this black silk bonnet was later than that period, but integrated aspects of bonnets of the … Continue reading
I was perusing the excellent online catalog at the British Museum (nice online image distribution system for educational use, by the way). I found this intriguing image of “A Chinese Lady,” printed after a painting by Allan Ramsey. I am … Continue reading
Last weekend, The Brigade of the American Revolution hosted an Authenticity Event at Don Carpentier’s Eastfield Village. A collection of two taverns, a store, a church, a doctor’s office, an assortment of shops, and a handful of houses were saved … Continue reading