Recently I was asked to look into the mechanical stresses in historic costumes mounted on three-dimensional forms. Not being familiar with the textile conservation field and in particular, how costumes are mounted for display, I attended Tae Smith’s TIPS session hoping to obtain some practical information on how costumes are mounted. I could not have found a better introduction to the field, even if it was for a specific type of exhibition. Tae gave a very clear and informative presentation on how she dealt with having to mount and display a large collection of modern fashions in somewhat limited space at the MOMA in 2017. The curators wanted to display the different pieces of clothing relatively flat, but still create the sense of form and space. Tae used 4 lb Ethafoam(TM) to produce semi-three-dimensional forms which could be hung on the exhibition walls, or used for free-standing displays. She presented a complete list of instructions on how to design the forms, accounting not only for size but also for ease of mounting and how the clothing would hang. She explained how to provide the illusion of body form, for example, in the neck and shoulders, and how to use exhibition fabric to enhance colors and appearance. Finally, she explained the wall and floor mounting systems themselves, and even how to cover up small cutting mistakes :=) with exhibition cloth and battings. I think I managed to scribble down all of the important instructions, but it would much better and worth your while to contact her for complete details.
https://aics47thannualmeeting2019.sched.com/event/MGbR/textiles-tips-session-2d-ethafoam-forms-for-exhibiting-costumes
#Featured#AICmtg19#47thAnnualMeeting(NewEngland)