CSA E-News
Volume 2 No. 16
November 15, 2003 Edition
Costume Society of America
http://www.costumesocietyamerica.com
CONTENTS:
1. Blockbuster News From Houston!
2. Food in Fashion
3. Website Assistant Needed
4. News From Members
5. Sampler Exhibits
6. Member Requests
7. More Books Added!
8. Exhibition Updates
9. Fashion Flash!
10. More Membership Survey Results
11. 2004 is Just Around the Corner!
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1. BLOCKBUSTER NEWS FROM HOUSTON!
What do NASA, Neiman Marcus and StarWars have in common?
They are all part of the *blockbuster* 20th Century Design
2004 Symposium in HOT, HAUTE HOUSTON! Word is just in that
Iain McCaig, concept designer for Lucasfilm's StarWars I, II
and III will present the Keynote Address on Wednesday
evening, May 26 at the 2004 CSA National Symposium in
Houston. Iain is from Victoria, British Columbia but will be
flying in to be with us from wherever his work has taken him
-- possibly Canada, California or London. This is shaping up
to be a Symposium you won't want to miss -- so hold the
dates of May 26-29, 2004!! Stay tuned for more exciting
details. For Symposium info, see
http://www.costumesocietyamerica.com/natsym.html
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2. FOOD IN FASHION
Only in California! Already open and making quite a stir --
"SALAD DRESSING: FOOD IN FASHION" -- an exhibition at Copia:
The American Center For Wine, Food & the Arts in downtown
Napa, CA. Curated by MELISSA LEVENTON, the exhibit has been
called outrageous and is inspired by surreal, theatrical,
artistic, flirtatious, sexual and other cultural taboos. The
presentation showcases 100 garments and photographs that
explore the art, fashion and fun of clothing that mocks and
imitates food.
This enticing show runs through January 12, 2004 and a small
catalogue -- with an essay by MELISSA -- accompanies the
exhibition. For additional information, please call
707-259-1600 or visit the website at http://www.copia.org
MELISSA is with the Curatrix Group, Museum Consultants and
Appraisers. See the website for more info:
http://www.curatrix.net/
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3. WEBSITE ASSISTANT NEEDED
This announcement from KATHI MARTIN, CSA VP for Technology:
We are looking for a volunteer assistant to the Webmaster!
The person in the new position will work directly with
Thomas Mitchell of Literae Interactive Designs, newly hired
CSA Webmaster. The job responsibilities include: collecting
updates and deletes from all the screen managers; compiling
these updates and deletes into a Word document once a week
and forwarding to the webmaster; and consulting on the new
design of the website. No special web skills required, only
use of Word and email; approximately 2-4 hours per week
needed to do the job. This is a great opportunity to assist
CSA, connect with fellow members, have fun, and work
with/learn from creative professionals! Contact KATHI for
more info: mailto:martink@drexel.edu
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4. NEWS FROM MEMBERS
A. CHANGES IN ISRAEL: DR. ROSE BRAUN became head of the
Fashion Design Department at Shenkar College of Engineering
& Design in Ramat-Gan, Israel. (http://www.shenkar.ac.il/)
This from ROSE: "My new job is fascinating and I am touching
again the core of my essence." Right before leaving her
duties at the Ministry of Education, one of her schools
received honorable mention for their website in a
competition judged by the Internet European Committee.
Congratulations to ROSE!
B. PROGRESS REPORT: From JOAN SEVERA: "I know it is early
on, as publication will probably not be until Spring 2005,
but I am so happy to announce that the manuscript and slides
of my new book are now in the hands of the publisher, Kent
State University Press. 'MY LIKENESS TAKEN' is a study of
273 Daguerreotype portraits, dating from 1839 to a little
past 1860."
C. THEATRE LECTURE: DR. ROSALIE CONTINO, independent costume
designer and costume historian of Brooklyn, NY, gave a
lecture/demonstration on turn-of-the century British costume
designer Percy Anderson and his contributions to the theatre
at the American Alliance for Theatre & Education national
conference in NYC in August. The research and project were
based on a grant received from the United States Institute
for Theatre Technology. Contact ROSALIE for more info:
mailto:rhcphd@worldnet.att.net
D. PARIS COUTURE: SALLY QUEEN shared this article from the
Washington Post with us, noting "the word usage between
fashion and costume."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A21947-2003Oct13.html
E. DIGITAL COSTUME: KATHI MARTIN recently gave a
presentation for the annual conference of the American
Society of Information Science and Technology in Long Beach,
CA. Her paper, titled "User Centric Design and
Implementation of a Digital Historic Costume Collection,"
was published in the conference proceedings. Also, KATHI
reports that Neiman Marcus sponsored a fundraising cocktail
party and fashion show earlier this month in Philadelphia,
featuring the award-winning student fashion designs from
Drexel's Spring Fashion Show. Proceeds went to the
University's Fashion Program.
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5. SAMPLER EXHIBITS
A. HISTORIC SAMPLERS: CSA member AGNES WEBB sends us
information about "HISTORIC SAMPLERS" -- the new exhibit at
the Monroe County Historical Association Stroud Mansion in
Stroudsburg, PA. AGNES reports that of special interest, and
very rare among stitched artifacts, are two globes from a
student at the Quaker Westtown School in Chester county, PA.
Around 1844, Sarah Sheppard made two silk globes -- one
celestial, the other terrestrial -- with silk stitching,
paint and ink.
The exhibit will be on display in the Victorian Parlor of
the Stroud Mansion through February 27, 2004. For more
information, phone Candace McGreevy at 570-421-7703 or AGNES
at 570-424-8668 or mailto:agnesweb@ptd.net
B. HAWAIIAN SAMPLES: Opening January 31, 2004 at the
American Textile History Museum in Lowell, MA is "LET'S GO
HAWAIIAN." The exhibition will have over 150 pieces that
offer a playful exploration of Hawaii from the 1930s to the
1960s. The shirts, most originating from the collection of
Dr. Gary Moss, picture the island's history, the beauty of
its landscape, its popular culture, and its lure as a
tourist resort. The exhibit closes June 20, 2004.
A special Preview Reception Luau will take place on Friday
evening, January 30. For ticket and exhibit information,
call 978-441-0400 or visit the website at
http://www.athm.org
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6. MEMBER REQUESTS
A. NATACHA RAMBOVA RESEARCH: CSA member HEATHER VAUGHAN is
an NYU graduate student writing her thesis on the work of
designer Natacha Rambova (1897-1966), an American born
designer who worked in fashion primarily between 1926 and
1932. Heather has already found approximately 20 garments
and 30 sketches, but is on the lookout for more. If you have
any garments, photos, or sketches in your collection please
contact her at mailto:haileen77@yahoo.com
B. JEWELRY NEWSLETTER: ELYSE KARLIN, president of the
American Society of Jewelry Historians, is also publisher of
"Adornment: The Newsletter of Jewelry & Related Arts," a
quarterly publication. If any CSA members are interested in
writing for "Adornment," they can email ELYSE at
mailto:ekarlin@usa.net for writer's guidelines. The
publication pays $100 per article -- the articles don't have
to be very long and can have been previously published. They
can be on jewelry, historic costume, accessories or buttons.
C. MANNEQUINS SOUGHT: NICOLE MCMULLEN, Collections Manager
for the York County Heritage Trust in York, Pennsylvania,
reports they are planning to do a temporary clothing
exhibit. She poses these questions: "Is there a source for
renting mannequins? If not, does anyone have a suggestion
for purchasing inexpensive mannequins suitable for
exhibiting antique clothing?" Please be in touch with NICOLE
at mailto:nmcmullen@yorkheritage.org
D. DOCTORAL STUDENT: SARA BRUBACHER, student of DR. JEAN
PARSONS at Iowa State University, is seeking digital
photographs of labels and dresses of the Fashion
Originators' Guild of America (FOGA). SARA is researching
FOGA as part of her dissertation and informs us that FOGA
was an organization of dress manufacturers in existence from
1932 to 1941 that sought to end design piracy. Participating
manufacturers of the Guild's program affixed labels in their
dresses that stated their designs were registered with the
FOGA. Contact SARA at mailto:sbb@iastate.edu
JEAN reminds us that she and SARA received the EVELYN WELCH
LIVINGSTONE grant to do part of this research, completed in
NY this past summer.
E. VOLUNTEER OPS: LOREEN FINKELSTEIN, VP for External
Affairs, is seeking volunteers with marketing skills to help
her with a promotional project for CSA. Anyone interested
can contact LOREEN at The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation,
757-220-7077 or mailto:lfinkelstein@cwf.org
If marketing is not your thing and you're interested in
volunteering for another area, then please be in touch with
FRAN MAYHEW, CSA Volunteer Coordinator, to discuss the
possibilities. Great networking opportunities! Contact Fran
at mailto:mayhew@udel.edu
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7. MORE BOOKS ADDED!
A. MEMBER AUTHORS: MELANIE SANFORD of the CSA Website
Bookstore Management Team, announces that four more CSA
member author books have been added to the Bookstore this
month. They are: "Celluloid Hand Fans" by CYNTHIA FENDEL;
"Shocking! The Art and Fashion of Elsa Schiaparelli" by
DILYS E. BLUM; "Headwraps: A Global Journey" by GEORGIA
SCOTT; and "Reforming Women's Fashion, 1850 - 1920:
Politics, Health and Art" by PATRICIA A. CUNNINGHAM. More
books to come! Check the Website for the additions at
http://www.costumesocietyamerica.com/Bookstore/index.html
B. SHOPPING WITH CSA: Just a reminder to shop for your
holiday gifts in the CSA Online Bookstore. And don't forget
to save your receipts for the free membership contest -- see
Bookstore page for details. Click here for all of your
Amazon.com purchases:
http://www.costumesocietyamerica.com/Bookstore/index.html
Thanks for supporting CSA!
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8. EXHIBITION UPDATES
A. KEYS TO HISTORY: Two costume-related virtual tours are available
on the McCord Museum website. In the "Keys To History" series, "Fancy
Dress: All Dressed Up and Somewhere to Go" by CYNTHIA COOPER, McCord
Curator of Costume and Textiles and "Clothes Make the Man" by GAIL
CARIOU, Parks Canada, are included in the thematic website tours.
Almost as good as being there in person, the tours are beautifully
designed at
http://www.musee-mccord.qc.ca/scripts/global.php3?Lang=1&PageName=projects/CH
/clefs.php&TblDel=B. DRAMATIC INSTALLATION: "John Bartlett: Dreaming in Darkness"
opens this month at the Cincinnati Art Museum, showing the best of the
Cincinnati native and FIT graduate's work -- designs of both men's and
women's clothing from the 1990s. The exhibit will run through
February 1, 2004. See
http://www.cincinnatiartmuseum.org/greatart/exhibitions_bartlett.shtml
C. ATLANTA OPENING: A sneak preview by your E-News Editor of
"Gone With the Girdle: Freedom, Restraint and Power in
Women's Dress" at the Atlanta History Center proved a
pleasure and an education. Just opened this month and
showing until April 18, 2004, Curator SUSAN NEILL captures
an intriguing view of women's history through costume of the
last 150 years. See the website for more details at
http://www.atlantahistorycenter.com/exhibitions/html/gwtg.htm
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9. FASHION FLASH!
A. MUSEUM QUALITY: In the November 2003 issue of "W," Miles
Socha asks, "Does fashion belong on people's backs -- or
behind glass?" In the article, "Museum Quality," he speaks
of the trend toward current designer retrospectives,
featuring the recently opened exhibition at the Museum of
Fashion & Textiles at the Louvre in Paris of "the
much-anticipated 10-year retrospective of Viktor Horsting
and Rolf Snoeren of Viktor & Rolf, the Dutch wizards of
conceptual fashion" which runs through January 25, 2004.
Claire Wilcox of the Victoria & Albert Museum and author
Aileen Ribeiro of the University of London are quoted in the
article. Several exhibitions by CSA members -- including
Philadelphia's "Shocking!" exhibit on Elsa Schiaparelli --
are listed.
B. YOOX.COM: Another trend -- selling vintage designer
clothing! Also in the November 2003 issue of "W" is a blurb
about an event last month on the website, Yoox.com -- known
for selling discount end-of-season designer clothing. "A
Tribute to Polly Mellen" -- the legendary fashion editor who
is "famous for supporting young designers and waxing
rhapsodic on the future of fashion" -- featured a vintage
sale of 150 items "illustrative of key fashion trends during
Mellen's 50-year career." For more details, see
http://www.yoox.com/vintage/vintage.asp
[Editor's note: I had been at Vogue magazine for about a
year -- in the early 1970s, right out of college -- when I
began my stint working as Polly Mellen's assistant. The day
I got the assignment, I went straight to the studio where
"Mrs. Mellen" was already at work with Richard Avedon. She
greeted me at the door, put her hands on my shoulders,
looked me square in the eye, and in her best, breathy
fashion-editor voice said, "I hope I don't make you
cry...too much." A perfect challenge: I took a deep breath,
and she never did. -CP]
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10. MORE MEMBERSHIP SURVEY RESULTS
Another of the findings of the CSA Membership Survey taken
this summer was that some members were not aware of certain
CSA awards and grants. The GRANTS, AWARDS AND HONORS program
is one of the keystone projects of the organization. If any
of you have suggestions on ways to enhance the promotion of
these benefits please email your ideas to the National
Office at mailto:national.office@costumesocietyamerica.com
Thank you!
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11. 2004 IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER!
It's the time of year to purchase next year's calendar. We
know CSA members will want to support North American
collections of dress and appearance by hanging the *only*
calendar for our field -- the 2004 HISTORIC FASHIONS
CALENDAR! Its beautiful, educational, a great gift, and
promotes & supports CSA. A new member *benefit* this year:
"The Wedding Dress" Calendar is available at a 25% discount
price to CSA members when purchased through CSA. SALLY
QUEEN, editor of the HISTORIC FASHIONS CALENDER series,
reminds us: did you know the foreword is written by CORNELIA
POWELL and 12 other CSA members or member institutions
are featured? Please call the National Office to place your
order: 800-272-9447. Order now for holiday gifts and a great
way to invite your local historical society to join CSA!
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