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  • 1.  STORY FOR THE ART NEWSPAPER

    Posted 11-01-2019 02:03 PM
    Hi all,

    I write for The Art Newspaper, Artnet, Architectural Digest, NYT, Le Quotidien de l'Art <g class="gr_ gr_138 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_hide gr_disable_anim_appear Grammar" id="138" data-gr-id="138">et</g> al.
    For 2 stories for The Art Newspaper, I need information regarding:
    1. Museums acquiring fashion, clothing: are any of your member museums now adding uniforms of some type to their collections such as those for firemen, cooks <g class="gr_ gr_325 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_hide gr_disable_anim_appear Grammar" id="325" data-gr-id="325">and</g> servants.
    <g class="gr_ gr_411 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_hide gr_disable_anim_appear Grammar" id="411" data-gr-id="411">Also</g> what are the most sought after fashion togs? Examples: early Chanel.

    2. Regarding historic houses and small historical societies.
    Northeast Auctions in NH told me a while back they were seeing more Americana from small historical organizations and <g class="gr_ gr_645 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_hide gr_disable_anim_appear Grammar" id="645" data-gr-id="645">historic  homes</g><g class="gr_ gr_651 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_hide gr_disable_anim_appear Grammar" id="651" data-gr-id="651">.Are</g> any of you seeing that? If so, please send some detail.

    3. I just did a story for The Art Newspaper which is up today onThe Art Newspaper Website regarding the fires in California. So if any member has further information on the impact of the fires, please do let me know.
    Many thanks,
    Best,
    Brook

    ------------------------------
    brook mason
    38 East 85th Street
    NY, NY 10028
    917 533 6261
    brookmason@gmail.co
    ------------------------------
    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 2.  RE: STORY FOR THE ART NEWSPAPER

    Posted 11-04-2019 07:55 AM
    Dear Brook - About 5 years ago, we received a collection numbering in the hundreds of mid-20th c. clothing objects designed by John Meyer of Norwich and manufactured in Norwich, CT.  (People of a certain age will know the brand).  After inventorying, cataloguing and describing, we mounted a temporary exhibition in our 3,600 square-foot that was one of our most popular in decades, speaking to at least one generation.  The company was so successful nationally, that it had one arrangement to make uniforms for airline "stewardesses." 

    In my opinion, while Chanel and Worth may be popular and desirable items in museum collections, those with a local connection and powerful story that includes consumers and "makers" will be most appreciated by the public.

    Cheers.  Vivian

    Vivian F. Zoë, Director
    Slater Memorial Museum
    108 Crescent Street, Norwich CT 06360
    860-425-5560 vox
    860-885-0379 fax

    "Inspiration is for amateurs - the rest of us just show up and get to work," Chuck Close, 2003


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    Original Message
    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 3.  RE: STORY FOR THE ART NEWSPAPER

    Posted 11-04-2019 02:53 PM
    I'm a freelance fashion and textile curator as well as an independent appraiser of same, so I can speak a bit to your question about what is desirable these days.

    It's tough to generalize because in my experience, what is desirable to a museum collecting fashion depends very much on the museum's mission and collection scope. For the museums I am involved with as a curator and an appraiser, high fashion labels are certainly valued but the quality of each object matters as well, as it does with any object a museum would collect.  Is it a great design?  Are its material attributes (quality, cut, line, structure, etc.) superior or innovative? Has it featured in significant exhibitions and/or publications? Is it rare? Is it in great condition? Has it been altered? It is haute couture or designer ready-to-wear? Does it have a celebrity connection?  Does the museum already have similar items? Is it a donation? All those considerations matter.  A significant early Chanel, for instance, that is in poor condition or has been materially altered is something many museums might think twice about acquiring.

    Museum fashion collections, especially those in art museums, are often designer-label heavy in their post-1900 holdings, so if one is  considering just the brand name angle, then yes, early Chanel can be quite desirable, along with (in no particular order) Schiaparelli, Poiret, Vionnet, Charles James, Rudi Gernreich, Dior, YSL, Balenciaga, Westwood, McQueen, Miyake, Comme des Garçons, Yohji Yamamoto, Guo Pei, Ines van Herpen, and others, depending on the quality of the object.  As supplies of great 18th and 19th century pieces dry up, attention has shifted to the 20th and 21st centuries.

    ------------------------------
    Melissa Leventon
    Principal
    [Curatrix Group]
    San Francisco CA
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    Original Message
    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


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