Past Exhibits 1996-1998
Kent State University will host its third annual Symposium on Advances in Organic Photovoltaics (OPVs) on April 16 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the Moulton Hall Ballroom on the Kent Campus. OPVs are specialized, carbon-based semiconducting materials used in solar cells, flexible electronics and organic lighting. Unlike typical inorganic solar cells that are silicon or thin-film-based, OPVs are flexible and have the potential to be produced at much lower costs than conventional solar cells through environmentally friendly processes such as jet-printing, spray painting, dip-coating and roll-to-roll...
August 1, 1997 - May 1, 1998
Higbee Gallery | Anne Bissonnette, Curator
This exhibition comes from the collection of Helen O. Borowitz, donor, friend and supporter of the Kent State University Museum.
September 1, 1997 - March 1, 1998
Mull Gallery | Anne Bissonnette, Curator
Through this exhibition of Greek costume from the Peloponnesian Folklore Foundation, the Kent State University Museum and members of the Greek community of Northeastern Ohio, we are pleased to present to the public indications of the many influences that helped to shape the wonderfully diverse, colorful and intri
December 1, 1996 - November 1, 1997
Mull Gallery | Anne Bissonnette, Curator
Shirley Kennedy in her book, Pucci: A Renaissance in Fashion, portrays the designer as an innovative and a dynamic force in the fashion world of the fifties and sixties. Explosive and joyful in both colors and patterns, "Puccis" revolutionized the field of textile design and contributed to changing the face of fashion.
April 1, 1997 - August 1, 1997
Anne Bissonnette, Curator
As a new form of genteel undress, tea gowns exhibited early and consistently abundant signs of historicism.
July 1, 1996 - March 1, 1997
Higbee Gallery | Anne Bissonnette, Curator
The Kent State University Museum was established with the gift of extraordinary examples of historic costume and decorative arts collected by Shannon Rodgers and Jerry Silverman. Instrumental to the formation of Shannon's collection of costume was the friendship, collaboration and expertise of Cora Ginsburg.
September 1, 1996 - January 1, 1997
Broadbent Gallery | Anne Bissonnette, Curator
The exhibition surveys 20th century American and European design. In conjunction with The Kent State University Museum's yearly gala, the exhibition focuses mostly on evening and cocktail wear.
July 1, 1997 - August 1, 1998
Broadbent Gallery | Anne Bissonnette, Curator
The exhibition surveys 19th century Indian and European shawls. To highlight their intricate patterns, twenty-three shawls are displayed flat on easels. An additional twenty shawls are draped on mannequins to show how these prized textiles were worn. The exhibition traces the west's fascination with Kashmir shawls beginning in the late 18th century and demonstrates their use as both a practical outer garment and as a status symbol. Cross-cultural influences between east and west are explained and the complexity of various methods of weaving is illustrated with close up photographs of the shawls on display.
Shawl weaving was a prestigious profession in India, and was reserved for men. It was extremely time consuming: two Indian weavers, sitting side by side at the loom, could take up to three years to produce a top quality shawl, the price of which might be equivalent to that of a house. When western women started their love affair with these Indian imports, European weavers attempted to produce a similar product at a lesser price, a quest which resulted in the invention of the Jacquard loom.
In the first half of the 19th century, Europeans copied the designs of Indian shawls. One of the towns where the shawls were produced was Paisley, Scotland, whose name became synonymous with both the shawls and the Asian teardrop or pinecone motif which decorated them. By the mid 19th century, European aesthetics came to dominate the design of the paisley shawls, and Indian weavers were forced to imitate western patterns and to adapt their traditional weaving techniques to compete in and international market. Paisley shawls fell from popularity in the 1870s, when the proved incompatible with the silhouette of the bustle.
August 1, 1997 - May 1, 1998
Higbee Gallery | Anne Bissonnette, Curator
This exhibition comes from the collection of Helen O. Borowitz, donor, friend and supporter of the Kent State University Museum. Although her collection includes costumes and accessories ranging from the 1860s to the present day, we focus here on objects from the 1920s and early 1930s, an era famous for the sophisticated lifestyle captured in the pages of the works of F. Scott Fitzgerald. These are the ensembles that might have been worn by Daisy Fay Buchanan in The Great Gatsby, ensembles that represent the jazz age and reflect the changing aesthetic at the beginning of the second quarter of the 20th century.
September 1, 1997 - March 1, 1998
Mull Gallery | Anne Bissonnette, Curator
Through this exhibition of Greek costume from the Peloponnesian Folklore Foundation, the Kent State University Museum and members of the Greek community of Northeastern Ohio, we are pleased to present to the public indications of the many influences that helped to shape the wonderfully diverse, colorful and intricate patterns of Greek traditional dress.
Far from being conservative or unchanging, these costumes were a bold statement of one's individuality, age, social ties and beliefs. Greek history is palpable in these garments which are the products of political ties and economic diversity and echo the powerful story of the nation. The costumes presented here are primarily from the second half of the 19th century to 1945, a period of time that corresponds to the liberation of Greece from Turkish rule. As modern Greece emerged from foreign domination, the migration of populations, foreign invasions, trade and the influence of Western European fashion all contributed to the evolution of Greek costume.
Each region, town or village developed specific types of costume with several variations, distinguished by dramatic color schemes, lavish ornamentation and numerous accessories. The nature of the costume worn also depended upon local materials and trade. There were essentially three types of costume: basic dress for daily wear, festive attire and bridal garments. Politically driven fashions also developed, for example the National Guard uniform which was worn chiefly by the armatoloi and klephts, the guerrillas of the Greek uprising against the Turks. This uniform later was established as court dress by Otto, the first king of Greece and subsequently became synonymous with Greek national dress for the world at large. We have entered an era where traditional costumes change minimally because they are no longer an integral element of daily life. Now embraced as an important aspect of Greek heritage, these garments testify to the Mediterranean's colorful character.
This exhibition would not have been possible without the generous support of Mrs. Ioanna Papantoniou and the Peloponnesian Folklore Foundation in Nafplio, Greece. We also would like to thank the Greek Ministry of Culture, the General Secretariat for Greeks Abroad, the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Hellenic Preservation Society, and Serge and Yanna Hadji-Mihaloglou.
December 1, 1996 - November 1, 1997
Mull Gallery | Anne Bissonnette, Curator
Shirley Kennedy in her book, Pucci: A Renaissance in Fashion, portrays the designer as an innovative and a dynamic force in the fashion world of the fifties and sixties. Explosive and joyful in both colors and patterns, "Puccis" revolutionized the field of textile design and contributed to changing the face of fashion. In the public eye for over two decades, a longevity that was no small feat in itself, part of the energetic appeal of the garments resided in their comfort and modernity.
Born into a noble Italian family in 1914, Marchese Emilio Pucci di Barsento was destined for a life of service in politics and diplomatic circles. Prior to obtaining a Ph.D. in political science, he was a member of the 1934 Italian Olympic ski team. A year later he won a skiing scholarship to Reed College in Oregon where he first ventured into design by creating the ski team's uniform. Unsurprisingly, it was on the ski slopes of St-Moritz in 1947 that the first Puccis were sighted by Harper's Bazaar fashion photographer Toni Frissell. When Diana Vreeland of the editorial staff saw the shots, she asked the Marchese to design a small group of ski clothes to sell in the United States. The jet-setter's life took on a new twist when Lord & Taylor department store bought his line and established a lasting association.
The first member of the Pucci family to work in a thousand years, he spared his family's honor upon entering the clothing business by signing his work with a simple "Emilio". He opened his first boutique in trendy Capri in 1949 and started producing finely drawn and brightly printed scarves and shirts. He later established his business headquarters in his family's ancestral palazzo in the heart of Florence. After his death in 1992, it still remains in operation.
At a time when French couture was highly constrictive and structured, Pucci's silk-jersey dresses, first created in 1954, were light-weight (only 3 to 4 ounces), wrinkle free and supremely comfortable. Identifiable at a glance with 60's pop culture, Pucci's fashions were in fact the forerunners of a generation of active sportswear synonymous with style and status.
April 1, 1997 - August 1, 1997
Anne Bissonnette, Curator
As a new form of genteel undress, tea gowns exhibited early and consistently abundant signs of historicism. By 1873, gowns labeled "robes d'interieurs" appeared with stylistic details that would become characteristic of tea gowns: "Watteau pleats", the draped back pleats set at the shoulders found on the 18th century sack dress, and a center-front panel in princess style which was gathered, draped or heavily decorated and perceived as an underdress. These two 18th century elements were often mixed with other revival styles, a common phenomenon for this eclectic era.
It was in the Victorian era that the seeds of change for the 20th century silhouette were planted. As in the case for most developments in the evolution of fashion, a series of events had preceded the innovative new styles of 1907 and had made minds ripe for their acceptance. The rage for "Japonisme", the Liberty style and years of revivalist tea gown styles combined to set the stage for Poiret's flowing, corsetless Directoire fashions. Victorian tea time provided a venue for fantasy, historically eclectic and exotic garments, comfort, and, coincidentally, a platform for twentieth century fashions.
July 1, 1996 - March 1, 1997
Higbee Gallery | Anne Bissonnette, Curator
The Kent State University Museum was established with the gift of extraordinary examples of historic costume and decorative arts collected by Shannon Rodgers and Jerry Silverman. Instrumental to the formation of Shannon's collection of costume was the friendship, collaboration and expertise of Cora Ginsburg. Cora's Manhattan shop, filled with superb antique costumes and textiles, provided Shannon with many of the most important pieces he acquired. In her turn, Mrs. Ginsburg has been a generous lender and donor to the Museum. Pieces from her personal collection added enormously to our exhibition "Costumes, Quilts and Coverlets, Continuing Traditions", and in 1988 an exhibition featured embroideries from her collection. To honor Shannon during the Museum's 10th anniversary, she presented him with five notebook of painstakingly collected textile samples spanning the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, and with 170 bound volumes constituting her impressive library of 19th century ladies' fashion periodicals. It is now our turn to honor Cora Ginsburg for her unselfish mentoring of our founding benefactor and for her exceptional generosity to the Museum.
September 1, 1996 - January 1, 1997
Broadbent Gallery | Anne Bissonnette, Curator
The exhibition surveys 20th century American and European design. In conjunction with The Kent State University Museum's yearly gala, the exhibition focuses mostly on evening and cocktail wear.
Numerous celebrity garments from the wardrobes of Marlena Dietrich, Julie Andrew, Dinah Shore, Clodette Colbert and Mona Bismark are out of the Museum's storage by popular demand. Fashions from the house of Dior, Chanel, Lacroix and other European designers are displayed side by side with such American favorites as Halston, Galanos, Bill Blass, Donald Brooks, Adele Simpson and Adrian.