Kent State University Museum
P.O. Box 5190, Rockwell Hall
Kent, Ohio 44242-0001
Tel: 330-672-3450
Fax: 330- 672-3218
museum@kent.edu
http://www.kent.edu/museum

Contact:
Jean L. Druesedow, Director
Kent State University Museum
jdruesed@kent.edu
330.672.3450

"Lace: The Art of Needle and Bobbin"
Until Jan. 6, 2008

Lace, the romantic fabric, has a history of prestige and beauty. The styles and qualities are so diverse; one piece of lace can actually mark a specific time and place in history.

The Kent State museum has an extraordinarily rich collection of laces from the 16th through the 20th centuries. Pieces highlighted in the exhibition are needle, bobbin and machine lace. Specifically, an 18th century lace flounce, an 18th century blonde lace shawl and a 19th century large triangular Chantilly shawl will be showcased.

Lace making revolves around two specific techniques: needle and bobbin. Needle lace, which uses a needle and thread, was the first technique developed. It originated from embroidery around 1400.

Early embroiders started adding interest to their craft by cutting out areas of background fabric and edging with stitch cutwork. The technique started to evolve and more and more of the background fabric was replaced with stitching. Eventually, all the fabric was eliminated, and needle lace was born. The new and unusual technique was called "punto in aria" or "point in air."

Bobbin lace was created shortly after. This technique requires thread to be wrapped around a bobbin or spindle, which is similar to weaving. Threads are twisted and interwoven to form delicate patterns and intricate designs. Unlike needle lace, bobbin lace was practiced by both men and women. Apparently, in the off-season, fishermen would produce bobbin lace right along side their wives.

Bobbin lace was created shortly after. This technique requires thread to be wrapped around a bobbin or spindle, which is similar to weaving. Threads are twisted and interwoven to form delicate patterns and intricate designs. Unlike needle lace, bobbin lace was practiced by both men and women. Apparently, in the off-season, fishermen would produce bobbin lace right along side their wives.

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"Vionnet 2007"
Until Jan. 27, 2008

Vionnet 2007 presents a selection of garments from the newly launched House of Vionnet's first collection designed by Sophia Kokosalaki. Through her eyes, the exhibition's curator, Dr. Anne Bissonnette, explores the legacy of Madeleine Vionnet (1876-1975), the legendary designer who opened her couture house in 1912 and revolutionized the world of fashion. Although her house closed in 1939 at the onset of World War II, the body of work created by Vionnet remains, sixty-eight years after her retirement, thoroughly modern and unsurpassed.

The House of Vionnet was reborn in 2007. The challenge this presented is the reason for the exhibition. How do you resurrect a firm created by a genius of garment engineering and one of the most gifted and original designer of the twentieth century? Very carefully. Times have changed and Madeleine Vionnet's structural and aesthetic revolution has been internalized. The female body that was revealed and released through Vionnet's designs is integral to today's fashion. Since 1991, the maze of Madame Vionnet's mind was brought to life through the research of Betty Kirke. The Vionnet paradox--simplicity and complexity combined-won the admiration of a new generation and generated the enthusiasm that contributed to the rebirth of the brand.

Madeleine Vionnet's signature minimalism, grace and elegance returns in Vionnet 2007. Beyond the use of the bias, the skillful combination of geometry and anatomy that Madame Vionnet made her own continues to inspire. Then and now, the cutting, tucking, twisting, wrapping, looping and tying of the fabric help to create inventive garments. The concern for structure, balance and movement suggest a timeless ideal of beauty.

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"Charles James"
Until Feb. 17, 2008

The body of work created by Charles James from 1926 until his death in 1978 has become a touchstone in the history of fashion. Distinctive, colorful and extreme are terms that describe both the clothes and the creator. The Kent State University Museum is proud to have in its collection several spectacular and highly sought-after garments by James that are the building blocks used to mark the 100th anniversary of the creator's birth.

Eleven garments will be on display in the Museum's Alumni Gallery. These will include early pieces, such as a black satin coat created in 1943-1945 for the Elizabeth Arden Salon on New York's Fifth Avenue, to some quintessential 1950s day, cocktail and evening attire. Among the jewels of the Museum's collection will be the magnificent "Butterfly" and "Concert" evening gowns. These garments will be shown alongside other astonishing pieces, such as Austine Hearst's "Four-Leaf Clover" evening gown, borrowed from The Ohio State University, and others from The Goldstein Museum of Design and Mount Mary College.

The garments presented will help visitors understand James' uncompromising idealism and his ability to make fabric obey his will. Always placing ideals before practical considerations, he padded, lined, interfaced, boned and wired cloth and devised numerous construction techniques to build fanciful gowns that transformed women into visions of gracefulness and elegance. His ability to drape cloth, at times directly on a person, was at the heart of some of his most important work. Yet his legacy in the twenty-first century lies overwhelmingly in his ability to cut the cloth to produce abstract and complex shapes brought to life through experimentation and imagination.

With fluid materials, Charles James created three-dimensional structures that defined his times and helped him find his own path, distinct from those that preceded him. He had the courage of his convictions and sought difficult answers based on body, cloth, and the space between and around them. A perfectionist, he worked tirelessly on improving a design over many years. James succeeded in transforming a woman's body into an icon of femininity.

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"Mood Indigo"
Sep. 27, 2007 - Aug. 31, 2008

The exhibition Mood Indigo will be on display in the Kent State University Museum from September 27, 2007, to August 31, 2008. The museum's largest gallery will feature over sixty textiles and garments from around the world. From humble Japanese work wear to high fashion, the history of one of the oldest and most important dyes will begin with a study of the Indian origin and global dissemination of the indigofera plant. Highly sought after because of its rare ability to resist fading to sunlight and water and color most textiles without the use of a mordant, blue of indigo became a favorite of the masses, yet its rich color retained a mystical quality that is still with us today.

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Northern Indiana Center for History
808 W. Washington St.
South Bend, Indiana 46601
(574) 235-9664
Fax: (574) 235-9059
http://www.centerforhistory.org

CONTACT: Marilyn Thompson, Director of Marketing, (574) 235-9664 or mailto:mthompson@centerforhistory.org

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Ohio Crafts Museum
1665 West Fifth Avenue
Columbus, OH 43212
(614) 486-4402

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Ohio State University Historic Costume & Textiles Collection
Columbus, OH
614-292-3090
http://costume.osu.edu/

"The Little Black Dress: A Fashion Icon"
Opening Oct. 19, 2007

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Robert Hillestad Textiles Gallery
Second Floor
Home Economics Building, East Campus
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Contact: Carolyn Ducey, Curator, IQSC,
cducey@unl.edu,
402-472-6301

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Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Cleveland, OH
216-781-7625
http://www.rockhall.com/

“Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers” 30 Years of Rock and Roll
Jun. 30, 2006 through 2007

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ music represents a unique blend of American rock and roll, British Invasion edge, and singer/songwriter intimacy. Since 1976, they have set the standard for great American rock bands with a succession of classic records and unrelenting live shows. This exhibit will feature a collection of original lyric manuscripts, key instruments, clothing seen in videos and on stage, and other artifacts, all of which are being displayed publicly for the first time.

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Royal Ontario Museum 
100 Queen's Park 
Toronto, Ontario
Canada
http://www.rom.on.ca

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State Historical Society of Iowa
Des Moines, IA
http://www.iowahistory.org/

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Textile Museum of Canada
55 Centre Ave
Toronto, Ontario
http://www.textilemuseum.ca

“Cloth That Grows on Trees”
Dec. 6, 2006 through Apr. 2007

"The Blues"
Until Mar. 2, 2008

The mystique of the colour blue - beautiful, elusive, reflecting the sky and the sea - pervades human life and culture around the world. The Blues examines the powerful symbolism associated with the colour blue.

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University of Nebraska State Museum, Lincoln
International Quilt Study Center
Lantz Center For Asian Culture, University of Nebraska State Museum
Lincoln, Nebraska
(402)472-6549
www.quiltstudy.org

The IQSC storage facility is open for drop-in visitors from 9am -noon,
Monday through Wednesday. Scheduled visits and tours may be arranged by
calling 402-472-6549.

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Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum
Decorah, IA
319-382-9681
http://www.vesterheim.org/

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Watkins Community Museum of History
1047 Massachusetts
Lawrence, KS
785-841-4109
PH: 785-841-4109
FAX: 785-841-9547
Email: wcmhist@sunflower.com
http://www.watkinsmuseum.org

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Western Reserve Historical Society
Cleveland, OH 
216-721-5722
http://www.wrhs.org