Parties de campagne

© Anne-Laure Camilleri
source: site Rustica

The last post wished to congratulate the recycling efforts in the textile domaine, but left me yearning for an eyeful of textile treasure. And then I remembered that the Musée de la Toile de Jouy has a beautiful exhibit on at this very moment, Parties de Campagne.

The theme is naturally the depiction of the countryside and gardens as seen in the printed fabrics of Jouy and other French maufacturers. These narrative and idealized views of the countyside were first imagined by Jean-Baptiste Huet 1745-1811, who was painter to Louis XV and designer for the Oberkampf manufactory.

The installation of the exhibit was imagined by designer 

Philippe Model.

 To accompany the exhibit, a catalogue which promises to be as informative as it is beautiful is available on line through the boutique Oberkampf.

Lavish images and close ups illustrate texts by specialists in garden and textile history, among them Yves-Marie Allain, Alain Baraton, Gabriela Lamy, Elisabeth Maisonnier, Aziza Gril-Mariotte, Philippe Model, Xavier Petitcol, Catriona Seth.

Toiles transformed

Closed for renovation, the mythic hotel Prince de Galles, just a few steps away from the Champs-Elysées on the avenue George V auctioned off its furnishings last February -  but what became of the toile de Jouy fabric that made up its curtains and bed spreads?  It has been made into smart blue and yellow reversable bags, easy to fit into a purse and take out for magazines, errands, extras. The French-made bags were limited to a series of 300; each tote is numbered and is sold on the site Bilumstore, specialist in the recycling of advertising banners...

and even air bags!

Each bag is one of a kind and very resistant.

In honor of India

photo Hermès

A fabric lover's dream, it takes five and 1/2 meters of material to make up the traditional sari, a garment still associated with weddings and important occasions even if western attire is typical for everyday wear in India. This month, Hèrmes is presenting its own version of limited edition saris in its 3 Indian stores.

photo Hermès

This marriage of French and Indian fabric traditions was developed in Lyon under the artistic direction of Pierre-Alexis Dumas. The collection includes four silk prints: New Springs in mousseline fabric; Fleurs Indiennes in double mousseline, Coupons Indiens in cashmere and Patch in silk twill.

This is the second edition of saris produced by Hermès. The first was made in collaboration with artist Sunita Kumar in 2001 whose own sari, made of several Hermès scarves sewn together, first inspired the idea at the time.

for more: CNNGo Mumbai
 Europe1

Chikan Embroidery from Lucknow

all photos in this article © Musée Guimet / 2011

The most ethereal elements of the Asian art collections at the Musée Guimet are these gossamer garments of the finest muslin. They were created in Lucknow, today the state capital of Uttar Pradesh in northern India and in the 18th to mid 19th century  home to one of the most brillant, cosmopolite and  lavish courts in India.  The economic and political eclipse of Delhi in 1739 permitted the wealthy ruling Nawabs of Lucknow  to attract some of the greatest artists of the time, whether writers, painters, poets or weavers. The museum's Riboud collection contains magnificent examples of the textile designs of the period, in particular the local specialty of white-on-white floral embroidery known as chikankari.

Detail from the short vest above probably made between 1850-1900.  This crescent moon decoration is a traditional design known as ambia.

Chikankari is known for the extreme delicacy of its whitework - mostly florals - and also for the fineness of the cotton support resulting in a cloud-light muslin. This muslin called malmal produced in Bengal, was already famous in antiquity. The threads of cotton needed for its manufacture were so thin they could be woven only during the monsoon season, moisture making them less brittle.

The chikan was usually embroidered on the sleeves, back or neckline of the garment. The muslin was so fine that often the garment could withstand only one washing, which is why so few pieces have come down to us.

 With the fall of the Nawabs of Lucknow, the demand for chikankari collapsed. However, it is estimated that even today 35% of the population works for the Lucknow chikan industry. As John Gillow explains in Traditional Indian Textiles, the last two great master embroiderers died in Lucknow in the 1980s and the industry has turned towards the mass market.  Some quality embroiderers may still be found to work on commission. 

source: Musée Guimet, Aurélie Samuel, Textile Curator
photos: © Musée Guimet / 2011

The pleasure of the tramway

photo St Tyl      Tram line 2

My favorite upholstry in all the Ile-de-France public transportation system is on tram line 2, 

La Défense-Porte de Versailles. It has the spunk of an animal pelt design and gets the message of its end-use through with all those dots and connecting lines.

I hope this one won a prize somewhere!

Inspired by textiles

Kilim photo St Tyl

Kilim  photo St Tyl

Navy Fringe  photo St Tyl

Jasper Conran for Wedgewood

as seen at Le Bon Marché Paris

Textile traces

photo: St Tyl

The chateau of Loches in Touraine was built in the year of 1000 by Foulques Nerra, the Black Prince, responsible for so much of the construction in the region around the time of the millennium. The castle's keep is 36 meters high and is still in excellent condition.  Such sturdy architecture made it an ideal prison, which it became in the 15th century. It continued to serve this function until 1926. 

These late Louis XVI cabriolet armchairs were upholstered in needlepoint made by a noble woman incarcerated there during the Reign of Terror 1793-94. Each medallion

contains the name of an aristocratic prisoner held in the chateau of Loches at that time.

photo: StTyl

What better way to pass the days under the circumstances - 

than to leave a textile souvenir for posterity?

The chairs were donated to the chateau of Loches by Mme la Comtesse Maussabré.