This exhibition takes a groundbreaking look at the little-known history of printing on fabric from the fifteenth century to the present. These stunning artworks, books, broadsides, and maps were initially prized as unique luxury editions of works normally printed on paper. Fabrics were substituted for paper at great cost, often using imported materials. Printing on Fabric also investigates the intentional choices of the printers and commissioners, some of whom were female, and shows how the origins of these lavish materials reflected the global world of the early modern textile economy.
Though the sheen of foreign silks enhanced the beauty of these objects for specific recipients, the techniques used to make them soon served wider audiences and cheaper fabrics equally well. Indeed, while surviving early examples are kept in museum and library collections, they inspired more recent printed wearables such as memorial imagery on t-shirts. From the ethereally unfamiliar to the everyday, exhibition audiences will find these fabric printings dazzling, intriguing, and thought-provoking.
Curator
Suzanne Karr Schmidt, George Amos Poole III Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts, Newberry Library
More About the Space
The Trienens galleries include an introductory gallery and a larger primary gallery. Exhibitions mounted there typically include 40-70 items from the Newberry's vast collections. Exhibitions in the Trienens galleries allow visitors to explore compelling themes and historical content in depth. Examples of past exhibitions include: Pop-Ups Through the Ages and Viva La Libertad. Click here to view a photo of the galleries.
