Early Modern Dress and Textiles
Lead Research Organisation:
Queen Mary University of London
Department Name: English
Abstract
In Early Modern Europe, what you wore was supposed to define who you were. Identities (gender, social, geographic) were meant to be clearly displayed on the body from the hat or kerchief on the head to the stockings and shoes on the feet. Much of this was made from expensive textiles and the investment in clothing at all levels of society was enormous, generating a constant concern to monitor and regulate this form of display.
An increasing number of scholars in different disciplines are now turning to dress and textiles and their histories in order to better understand the multiplicity of meanings that they offered in different parts of Europe between 1500 and 1800. Their study often involves archival work and literary analysis. At the same time those involved in preserving and displaying these items, and those concerned with reconstructing dress (often for theatrical purposes) have developed a much deeper understanding of the material qualities of Early Modern dress and textiles- what they were made from and how. This network brings these researchers, who often work in very diverse settings and with very different sources together over a two year period in order to actress a series of common questions. In bringing together this group to work with objects themselves in museum and conservation settings, we aim to work across different professional fields and engage with the very substantial public interest in the reconstruction of historic dress.
An increasing number of scholars in different disciplines are now turning to dress and textiles and their histories in order to better understand the multiplicity of meanings that they offered in different parts of Europe between 1500 and 1800. Their study often involves archival work and literary analysis. At the same time those involved in preserving and displaying these items, and those concerned with reconstructing dress (often for theatrical purposes) have developed a much deeper understanding of the material qualities of Early Modern dress and textiles- what they were made from and how. This network brings these researchers, who often work in very diverse settings and with very different sources together over a two year period in order to actress a series of common questions. In bringing together this group to work with objects themselves in museum and conservation settings, we aim to work across different professional fields and engage with the very substantial public interest in the reconstruction of historic dress.
People |
ORCID iD |
Evelyn Welch (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Rublack, U.
(2012)
Dressing Up: Cultural Identity in Renaissance Europe
Lisa Jardine
(2011)
'Underwear as Outerwear'
in BBC News Magazine
Lesley Miller
Dressing the Spanish Way
Lesley Miller
(2009)
Le Costume de Cour en Europe 1650 - 1800
Evelyn Welch (Author)
(2011)
Ornamentalism: The Art of Renaissance Accessories
Currie E
(2009)
Fashion Networks: Consumer Demand and the Clothing Trade in Florence from the Mid-Sixteenth to Early Seventeenth Centuries
in Journal of Medieval and Early Modern Studies
Currie E
(2008)
Clothing and a Florentine style, 1550-1620
in Renaissance Studies
Coltman V
(2013)
Party-Coloured Plaid? Portraits of Eighteenth-Century Scots in Tartan
in Textile History
Title | Ed Hogg performing John Donne's 'On his Mistress going to bed' |
Type Of Art | Performance (Music, Dance, Drama, etc) |
Title | Enlightenment Gallery |
Type Of Art | Artistic/Creative Exhibition |
Title | Pleasure Gardens display |
Type Of Art | Artistic/Creative Exhibition |
Title | Reformation Galleries |
Type Of Art | Artistic/Creative Exhibition |