27 January 2012

Unveiled: Wedding Dress of the Week

Posted by Claire Regnault under Collections Online, Exhibitions, Fashion, History, Textiles, Unveiled: 200 Years of Wedding Dress | Tags: , , , |
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One of my most favourite fashion terms is passementerie. Its a French term that looks and sounds good, and which economically describes a luxurious array of frivolities used to adorn dress and interiors, including pom poms, bobbles, braid, ribbon, fringing, buttons, tassels and gimp. The English equivalent is the equally delightful ‘haberdashery’. 

This week’s Wedding Dress is a celebration of passementarie. It is from Te Papa’s collection. 

Wedding Dress, circa 1890, Greymouth. Gift of Vivienne Robertson, 1982. Te Papa

Wedding Dress, c. 1909, Greymouth. Gift of Vivienne Robertson, 1982. Te Papa

Passementerie trimmings became very fashionable in dress in the middle of the 19th century. As fashion historian Lucy Johnston comments trimmings came to be used to such an extent that  ’fashionable women must have looked very much at home surrounded by tasselled valances and chairs embellished with fringe’.

Made from a heavy silk satin, our ‘Wedding Dress of the Week’ was worn by Christina Thomson who married Charles Haglund in 1909. They married in the gold-mining town of Kumara, on the South Island’s West Coast. Charles’s father, John, was a Swedish immigrant who ‘came to the coast in the sixties and followed the gold rushes all over the district’. According to the Grey River Argus, John ‘met with his fair share of luck’ and was held in esteem by ‘all who knew him’. While we currently don’t know much about Charles and Christina’s life, we do know that geographical isolation did not prevent Christina from having a spectacular dress for her wedding. The bodice is a confection of lace, braid, cord and bobbles, and the sheen of the silk is dazzling.  

Detail of pin tucks
Detail of the bodice.

As well as passementerie, the bodice features rows of pin tucks front and back. In contrast to the vertical rows of tucks, the sleeves are horizontally pleated, with each pleat accentuated by a button.  

Detail of the sleeve

 
The tucks, pleats and layers of passementerie work in unison to play capture the light and the eye.  It would have looked dazzling in candle light.

Detail of the passementerie and silk bow at the waist.

 
In  comparison to the bodice, the skirt, which comprises nine gores,  is unadorned except for a pleated lace ruffle at hem. Despite being unadorned, the skirt  could never be described as ‘plain’. The sheen and weight of the fabric give it a sculptural presence, its smoothness working to accentuate the bodice.
Wedding dress

Back view

 
 Wedding Dress of the Week is posted in conjunction with the exhibition Unveiled: 200 years of the Wedding Fashion from the Victoria and Albert Museum, London which is on display at Te Papa until 22 April.
 
 

27 January 2012

Te Papa research online on National Geographic website

Posted by Vincent Zintzen under Fish | Tags: , , , , |
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Recently, I published with my colleagues from Te Papa Fish Team and Massey University some interesting findings about a fantastic group of species: hagfishes. Those primitive deep-sea fishes repulse any predator attack using their slime. I present examples of how hagfish stop the attack from shark several times their sizes. And it even looked easy… The paper also documents a first ever observed predating behaviour of hagfishes in the wild. We thought they were only eating dead or dying animals, but now we know that they can also hunt for preys. Combining this with the fact that hagfish have existed on Earth, almost unchanged, for 300 millions years and are the ancestors of all vertebrates, they are quite impressive animals! You can download the open-access paper here.

Those videos got National Geographic attention and were published on their website where you can find other examples of amazing animal behaviours. It is well worth having a look at. Follow this link to the National Geographic video.

Dalatias licha attacking hagfish

The seal shark, Dalatias licha, attacking the common hagfish, Eptatretus cirrhatus

In the meantime, our team is getting ready for another expedition. In about ten days, we are heading down South for almost one month of intensive sampling. This time, we will study fish biology and behaviours off the Otago Peninsula and around the Auckland Islands which are part of the Sub Antarctic islands. This is an amazingly wild place to work on! I will post in the coming days more information about this exciting survey.

Speak to you soon,

Vincent

 

25 January 2012

Unveiled events programme kicks off!

Posted by Claire Regnault under Exhibitions, Fashion, History, Unveiled: 200 Years of Wedding Dress
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Following the holiday period, Te Papa is getting into full swing for 2012. The lifts are crammed, the phones are ringing, emails are flying and meeting requests are flooding in.  Best of all, it also means that the 2012 Events Programme for Unveiled: 200 Years of Wedding Fashion from the Victoria & Albert Museum, London is about to take off. The programme comprises of floortalks, lectures, fashion shows and even a Conservation Clinic, all designed to enhance the Unveiled experience.

From February onwards, we will be offering lunchtime floor talks every Tuesday and Thursday at 12.15. On Tuesdays you’ll be guided by a Te Papa curator, and on Thursdays a well-known fashion figure will give their personal take on the exhibition. The following fashionistas will be your tour guides throughout February.

February 2: fashion stylist Sally-ann Moffat

February 9: fashion editor Carolyn Enting           

February 16: designer Jane Yeh

February 23: milliner Amanda Nicolle

If you would like to book into either a Tuesday or Thursday floortalk email floortalks@tepapa.govt.nz  Admission charges apply.

February also sees the launch of the Unveiled Lecture Programme, admission to which is free. It starts on Sunday 12 February at 2pm with an intriguing journey into the glamorous World of Charles Frederick Worth – Pioneer of Haute Couture with Maureen Montgomery from Canterbury University.

Clara Mathews' wedding dress by Charles Frederick Worth, 1879. Collection of V&A. Given by Mrs G.T. Morton.

Clara Mathews' wedding dress by Charles Frederick Worth, 1879. Collection of V&A. Given by Mrs G.T. Morton.

One of the most spectacular gowns on display in Unveiled is a wedding dress made for the American Clara Mathews by the Paris couturier Charles Frederick Worth (left). 

In the latter half of the 19th century, a visit to Worth’s rooms at 7, Rue de la Paix had become compulsory for wealthy Americans visiting Europe. His gowns spoke of style, taste, and money at a time when display and appearances were everything. 

Guest lecturer Maureen Montgomery invites you to glimpse Worth’s world through the eyes of his high-society American devotees. Come along to find out why these women were his best customers – ‘better than queens’. 

Maureen Montgomery is an associate professor in the School of Humanities at the University of Canterbury. She is author of two books on women in US high society in the late 19th and early 20th centuries: Gilded Prostitution: Status, Money and Transatlantic Marriages 1870-1920 and Displaying Women: Spectacles of Leisure in Edith Wharton’s New York. 

Sunday 12 February, 2012, 2-3pm Soundings Theatre, FREE entry

Other lectures include:

18 March: Modern Bride – Vinka Lukas’s Wedding Empire with Lucy Hammonds

 15 April: War Brides’ Weddings – When Clothing Coupons Dictated Fashion with Dr Gabrielle Fortune

 

20 January 2012

Unveiled: Wedding Dress of the Week

Posted by Claire Regnault under Fashion, History, Unveiled: 200 Years of Wedding Dress | Tags: , , , |
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This week’s ‘wedding dress of the week’ is an homage to classicism. Designed by Ian & Marcel this dress and coat is one of the most subtle yet rewarding ensembles included in Unveiled: 200 Years of Wedding Fashion from the Victoria & Albert Museum, London.

Pleated silk wedding dress and coat, net veil decorated with silicone rubber, by Ian and Marcel, London, 1989. Bequeathed by Ian and Marcel. ©Victoria and Albert Museum / V&A Images

Pleated silk wedding dress and coat, net veil decorated with silicone rubber, by Ian and Marcel, London, 1989. Bequeathed by Ian and Marcel. ©Victoria and Albert Museum / V&A Images

Ian & Marcel was founded in 1979 by two Canadians – Ian Cooper and Marcel Aucoin. Both trained in Canada, and moved to London in the late 1970s, where Cooper completed a masters degree in fashion at the St Martins School of Art. In the UK, the duo quickly established a reputation for their exquisitely hand-painted garments, and pleated silks. The latter were inspired by the work of Mariano Fortuny (1871 – 1949). Born in Spain and based in Venice, Fortuny was renowned for his ‘Delphos’ dress, a full-length, body clinging gown made of finely pleated silk which was weighted at the hem and sleeves with Venetian glass beads. The beads not only added an ornamental touch, but also assisted with the drape of the gown.

As the name Delphos suggests, Fortuny was inspired by the Classical world as alluded to in this photograph from The Metropolitan.

Evening dress by House of Fortuny, 1930s. Gift of Estate of Agnes Miles Carpenter, 1958. Collection of the Costume Institute, Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY. C.I.58.61.3a, b.

Evening dress by House of Fortuny, 1930s. Gift of Estate of Agnes Miles Carpenter, 1958. Collection of the Costume Institute, Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY. C.I.58.61.3a, b.

Influenced by neo-classicism and the 19th century dress reform movement, Fortuny’s Delphos gown was initially popular in artistic circles. Early adopters included dancer Isadora Duncan and actress Lillian Gish. Over-time the Delphos became acceptable as ‘at-home’ wear and later as evening wear.

Cooper and Aucoin saw an exhibition of Fortuny’s work in 1980 at the Brighton Museum and Art Gallery. Obviously entranced, they skilfully updated the Fortuny-look for the 1980s silhouette as this wedding dress elegantly demonstrates.

The execution of the veil, which features roses ‘drawn’ in silicone rubber,  also brings Ian & Marcel’s historically inspired wedding gown into the contemporary. The duo developed a silicone rubber and silk technique to create stitch-free seams and hems, and decorative elements.

Pleated silk and silk net with rubber decoration by Ian and Marcel. ©Victoria and Albert Museum / V&A Images

Pleated silk and silk net with silicone rubber decoration by Ian and Marcel. ©Victoria and Albert Museum / V&A Images

Another example of this technique, applied to an evening gown, can be viewed on the V&A’s website. 

Ian & Marcel bequeathed a significant collection of their work to the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1992. Both designers sadly succumbed to AIDS related illnesses in the early 1990s. Reflecting on their approach, Lady Holly Rumbold, who co-wrote Ian and Marcel : Hand Painted and Pleated Silks with Elizabeth Vernon in 1993, wistfully observed:

‘Ian & Marcel reminded us of medieval knights, whose quest was for beauty’s perfection. They consecrated their lives to their art and the realisation of their ideals, with the same single-mindedness and fervour of Parsifal in pursuit of the Holy Grail’.

 

13 January 2012

Unveiled: Wedding Dress of the Week

Posted by Claire Regnault under Collections Online, Exhibitions, Fashion, History, Unveiled: 200 Years of Wedding Dress | Tags: , , , , |
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This week’s wedding dress is a recent acquisition – one which caused much excitment amongst Te Papa’s History team when it arrived. Wholly romantic in design, this dress is made from a Second World War silk parachute. It was made for Carol Gifford by members of her family, for her marriage to Owen Thomas on 8 August 1946 at St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in New Plymouth.

Wedding dress, 1946, New Zealand. Gifford Family. Gift of the Thomas Family, 2011. Te Papa

Silk parachute wedding dress, 1946, New Zealand. Gifford Family. Gift of the Thomas Family, 2011. Te Papa

Owen Thomas was discharged from the New Zealand Army in 1946. He brought the parachute back from the Pacific where he had been posted. During the war, silk was a rare and much sought after commodity. Japan – an ally of Germany and Italy since 1939 – was the world’s foremost supplier of raw-silk. Needless to say, the war severely interrupted its supply. In the immediate post-war period, fabric for new clothing, including silk, remained scarce. As such salvaged parachutes, which included approximately 65 metres of fabric, were prized. Not only did a parachute provide  dressmaker with ample fabric to utilise – the gown’s sweeping full skirt flaunts war-time fabric restrictions - it also enabled a bride to honour the war service of her husband-to-be.

Maker’s often incorporated integral elements of the parachute’s manufacture into the design of the garment. In the wedding dress below from the Smithsonian Collection, the ingenious bride, Ruth Hensinger, used the parachute’s the cords and cord casings to ruche the skirt, and cordless casings to form decorative band around bottom of skirt. Ruth married Major Claude Hensinger, a B-29 pilot in World War II who escaped his burning plane by parachute. You can read their story on the Smithsonian’s website.

Parachute silk wedding dress, 1947. Collection of the Smithsonian - National Museum of American History. Gift of Claude E. and Ruth L. Hensinger.

Parachute silk wedding dress, 1947. Collection of the Smithsonian - National Museum of American History. Gift of Claude E. and Ruth L. Hensinger.

Josephine Gale, the maker of this hand-stitched petticoat from Te Papa’s collection, also utilised aspects of the parachute’s manufacture. The bodice features the ‘zigzag’ seam from the parachute’s canopy. 

Petticoat, 1946, New Zealand. Gale, Josephine. Gift of the Gale Family, 2010. Te Papa

Parachute nyon petticoat, 1946, New Zealand. Made by Josephine Gale. Gift of the Gale Family, 2010. Te Papa

The petticoat, which was made by Josephine for her wedding trousseau, is made from a number of inset pieces, indicating that every available piece of fabric was precious and of use. Josephine married Flight Lieutenant David Gale of the RNZAF on 3 September 1946.

Following their wedding, Carol and Owen Thomas continued to make the most of their unexpected gift of silk. Part of the wedding gown’s sleeves were incorporated into christening gowns, illustrating the ongoing value of the parachute silk and associated memories to the family.

Carol Thomas (nee Gifford) wearing her parachute silk and lace wedding dress, 1946. Photographer unknown. Gift of the Thomas Family, 2011, Te Papa.
Carol Thomas (nee Gifford) wearing her parachute silk and lace wedding dress, 1946. Photographer unknown. Gift of the Thomas Family, 2011, Te Papa.

Wedding Dress of the Week is posted in association with  UNVEILED: 200 YEARS OF WEDDING FASHION FROM THE VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM, LONDON

 

 

13 January 2012

One step forward after three steps back – slow progress with restoring populations of New Zealand seabirds

Posted by Colin Miskelly under Bay of Plenty oil spill, Birds, Conservation | Tags: , , |
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Fairy prion chick being banded on Mana Island, January 2012. Photo: Kate McAlpine & Colin Miskelly

2011 was a grim year for New Zealand seabirds. They suffered the triple-whammy of nuclear-fallout from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi power plant affecting the North Pacific non-breeding grounds of at least four species, a severe winter storm that killed up to half a million prions, then the Rena oil spill believed to have killed several thousand birds. Compared to the scale of these disasters, attempts to restore seabird populations appear almost futile.

Storm-wrecked prions at Paekakariki, Wellington west coast, July 2011. Photo: Colin Miskelly

Diving petrels and fluttering shearwaters killed by the Rena oil spill, Bay of Plenty, October 2011. Photo: Colin Miskelly

For the past two decades, New Zealand conservationists have been developing techniques for restoring burrow-nesting petrels (including shearwaters and prions) to sites safe from predators. This required overcoming the birds’ strong homing instincts by translocating then hand-feeding young chicks until they completed their feather development and flew out to sea. This method has now been tried on more than ten species of petrels, but progress is glacially slow. All petrel species lay only a single egg per year, and many do not start breeding (or even return to land) until they are four or more years old.

Translocated fluttering shearwater chick being fed a sardine smoothy, Mana Island, January 2007. Photo: David Cornick

Mana Island, off the Wellington west coast, has been the single site where the greatest effort has been made to restore burrow-nesting petrels. Between 1997 and 2008, over 700 chicks of three species were translocated to the island, and cared for by teams of contractors and volunteers organised by the Department of Conservation and the Friends of Mana Island (a community conservation group). The younger birds are still returning, but over 60 have been recorded back so far.

All three species are now nesting on the island, with increasing numbers of chicks being recorded each year. During the 2011/12 breeding season, 19 chicks are known to have survived to fledging – 8 common diving petrels, 7 fluttering shearwaters and 4 fairy prions. Other chicks are likely to have been produced in undetected or unmonitored burrows (some of the latter are located at inaccessible cliff sites).

In addition to the translocated chicks that returned as adults, a few unmarked birds of each species have been attracted by loudspeakers broadcasting petrel calls each night, and perhaps also by the birds that have returned to the island.

Colin Miskelly holding a fluttering shearwater chick, Mana Island, January 2012. Photo: Kate McAlpine & Colin Miskelly

Restoring seabirds takes time and requires a lot of effort. Understanding how to proceed, at what cost, and the likely outcomes, is essential as we consider how to offset the impacts of disasters caused directly or indirectly by humans.

Further information
Te Papa prion wreck blogs
 Te Papa Rena oil spill blogs
Miskelly, C.M.; Taylor, G.A.; Gummer, H.; Williams, R. 2009. Translocations of eight species of burrow-nesting seabirds (genera Pterodroma, Pelecanoides, Pachyptila and Puffinus: Family Procellariidae). Biological conservation 142: 1965-1980.

 

6 January 2012

Unveiled: Wedding Dress of the Week

Posted by Claire Regnault under Exhibitions, Fashion, History, Unveiled: 200 Years of Wedding Dress | Tags: , , |
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Wedding dress by Charles James for Baba Beaton, 1934

The Parisian fashion designer Madeleine Vionnet (1876 – 1975) is credited with having invented the bias cut. She commented: ‘Maybe because everyone else made dresses that flowed in the same direction, I saw that if I turned the fabric on an angle… it gained elasticity’.

Elasticity is something that this silk satin gown by Charles James (1906 -1978) certainly needs. The wedding gown, which looks as it has been poured onto its mannequin, has no fastenings of any real meaning – not a zip, not a button, not a dome, just a hook and loop at the neck. Created in 1934, it is an early example of the Anglo-American designer’s work.  James, who opened premises in London in 1929, was to become renowned for his complex approach to cut and drape.  

Silk satin wedding dress by Charles James, London, 1934. Wax orange blossom choker. Worn by Baba (Barbara) Beaton for her marriage to Alec Hambro on 6 November 1934.Given by Mrs. Alec Hambro

Silk satin wedding dress by Charles James, London, 1934. Wax orange blossom choker. Worn by Baba (Barbara) Beaton for her marriage to Alec Hambro on 6 November 1934.Given by Mrs. Alec Hambro

While the gown, which was worn by Barbara ‘Baba’ Beaton on the occasion of her marriage to Alec Hambro, gives the appearance of simplicity, its construction is clever and complex. It is elaborately seamed and darted, especially at the back.  James commented ’all my seams have meaning – they emphasise something about the body’.

Detail of the back darts and seams.

Detail of the back darts and seams.

James has cleverly used the seams and darts to mould the dress to the body while also creating an abstract and pleasing pattern. The darts shown in the detail above, originate from the bust, embrace the waist and artfully shape the hips. James aimed to celebrate the female figure, and in this dress he caresses it with seams. In the muslin toile below, which dates from 1947, he again defines the waist and hip with dynamic seams.

Half sewn muslin for Charles James' 'Ribbon' dress, 1947. Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Millicent Huttleston Rogers, 1949

Half sewn muslin for Charles James' 'Ribbon' dress, 1947. Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Millicent Huttleston Rogers, 1949

The image of the toile and the sketch below, are from the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s online datebase. The Met holds an extraordinary collection of finished dresses, sewn muslins or toiles, flat patterns and sketches by James that show his complex design process from beginning to end. For those interested in the intricacies of his designs it is well worth investigating.

Sketch by Charles James, 1942. Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Mrs. Clive Runnels and Mrs. Edward L. Ryerson, 1957

Sketch by Charles James, 1942. Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Mrs. Clive Runnels and Mrs. Edward L. Ryerson, 1957

 
While Charles James gown for Baba Beaton was very contemporary, her bridesmaid wore a red velvet bustle dress, and the page boys wore Elizabethan ruffs, red velvet jackets and white satin breeches. The wedding was stage-managed by Baba Beaton’s brother, society photographer Cecil Beaton, who ensured that it was a theatrical affair. The ‘Medieval Wedding’ was captured on film by British Pathe. The wedding dress is one of two satin gowns commissioned by Baba Beaton in 1934. She also commissioned an evening gown.
 

Baba Beaton’s dress by Charles James is one of the stars of Unveiled: 200 Years of Wedding Fashion from the Victoria and Albert Museum, London and is on display at Te Papa until 22 April.  

 

 

29 December 2011

Unveiled: Wedding Dress of the Week

Posted by Claire Regnault under Exhibitions, Fashion, History, Unveiled: 200 Years of Wedding Dress | Tags: , , , , |
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A Christmas Wedding

This silk chiffon and satin dress was worn by Lucy Eleanor (Lulu) Cracroft of Hataitai when she wed James Meade Ferguson at St Mark’s Church in Wellington just after Christmas on 29 December, 1914.

Wedding gown, 1914. Maker unknown. Collection of Te Papa. Gift of Mr I C Ferguson, 1982

Wedding gown, 1914. Maker unknown. Collection of Te Papa. Gift of Mr I C Ferguson, 1982

Lucy’s dress features a fashionably relaxed silhouette and a ‘V-neckline’. The latter had come into play in 1913, causing both excitement and outrage. As fashion historian James Laver writes, the new neckline was ‘denounced from the pulpit as something very like indecent exposure and by doctors as a danger to health’. Indeed, it was nicknamed the ‘pneumonia blouse’. By the year of Lucy’s marriage, however, the style had become socially acceptable, and her modest V – trimmed with faux pearls, embroidered net, French knots and a pleated ruffle – was certainly suitable for a church wedding.

While the dress is machine sewn, it features a significant amount of hand detailing and finishing, including a ‘true lovers’ knot’ or bow embroidered in faux pearls on the train.

Detail of the train

Detail of the train

The train itself is padded and has small weights sewn into the hem to ensure a smooth journey down the aisle (and no doubt strong enough to defeat Wellington’s unpredictable winds). She completed her outfit with ‘something old, something borrowed’ – her grandmother’s Limerick lace veil.

An account of the Cracroft/Ferguson wedding appeared in the The Evening Post. The reporter noted that the bride was given away by her mother – her father Captain Henry Cracroft had passed away in 1909 – and avidly describes the ladies’ attire. Rather than carrying a dainty posy, Lucy carried a large spray of trumpet lilies and maiden-hair fern, the splendour of which is captured in this wedding portrait by Hardie Shaw Studios, which is also in Te Papa’s collection (below).

Lucy Ferguson nee Cracroft on her wedding day, 29 December 1914. Photograh by Hardie Shaw Studios. Collection of Te Papa

Lucy Ferguson nee Cracroft on her wedding day, 29 December 1914. photograph by Hardie Shaw Studios. Collection of Te Papa. Gift of Mr I C Ferguson, 1982

The bride’s mother wore ‘mole crepe de chine, with cerise trimming’ and carried pink sweet peas, while her sister Kathleen wore ‘embroidered voile’ and carried a bouquet of blue hydrangeas and maiden-hair fern. In stark comparison to the summery nature of Cracroft party, the mother of the groom wore black crepe de chine and carried heliotrope blossoms. Typically, the male attire was overlooked.

Unveiled: 200 Years of Wedding Dress from the Victoria and Albert Museum, London also features a dress from 1914. While there are some similarities between the two dresses, they are also world’s apart. The V&A’s dress is by Aida Woolf, an exclusive London couturier. Embellished with sparkling glass beads, the gown reflects the growing influence of evening wear on bridal clothes. While both gowns feature a fashionable V neckline and lover’s knot on the train, Woolf’s layered construction and ankle revealing scalloped hemline, show her to be at the forefront of pre-war fashion.

Beaded lace wedding dress and train designed by Aida Woolf, London, 1914. Worn by Phyllis Blaiberg for her marriage to Bertie Mayer Stone at the Bayswater Synagogue, London on 9 September 1914. Gift of Mrs B. Rackow

Beaded lace wedding dress and train designed by Aida Woolf, London, 1914. Worn by Phyllis Blaiberg for her marriage to Bertie Mayer Stone at the Bayswater Synagogue, London on 9 September 1914. Gift of Mrs B. Rackow

The scalloped hem enabled the bride, one Phyllis Blaiberg, to show off not only her ankles but her Peter Robinson designed shoes (below), two of the most covetable items in the exhibition.
Silk brocade shoes purchased from Peter Robinson, London, 1914. Worn by Phyllis Blaiberg for her marriage to Bertie Mayer Stone at the Bayswater Synagogue, London on 9 September 1914. Given by Mrs B. Rackow
Silk brocade shoes purchased from Peter Robinson, London, 1914. Worn by Phyllis Blaiberg for her marriage to Bertie Mayer Stone at the Bayswater Synagogue, London on 9 September 1914. Given by Mrs B. Rackow

WEDDING DRESS OF THE WEEK IS POSTED IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE EXHIBITION UNVEILED: 200 YEARS OF WEDDING DRESS FROM THE VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM, LONDON. POSTS FEATURES GARMENTS FROM THE EXHIBITION, TE PAPA’S COLLECTION AND TE PAPA’S WEDDING PHOTO GALLERY.

 

23 December 2011

Unveiled: Wedding Dress of the Week

Posted by Claire Regnault under Exhibitions, Fashion, History | Tags: , |
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Perhaps a little unwisely, I have decided to commit to a weekly blog post in conjunction with our current exhibition Unveiled: 200 Years of Wedding Dress from the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Wedding Gown of the Week will include gowns from the Unveiled and Te Papa’s own collection – the exhibition has spurred us on to exploring our own holdings – alongside some of the wonderful creations from Te Papa’s New Zealand Wedding Photo Gallery.

The week’s wedding dress is from the Victoria and Albert’s collection, and quite surpisingly has a New Zealand connection. The dress was made in 1885 by Gladman and Womack, London based Court Dressmakers, for the delightfully named May Primrose.

Wedding dress made by Gladman & Womack, London, 1885. Cream silk satin trimmed with embroidered net and pearl beads. Worn by May Primrose to marry Major Herbert Littledale on 10 June 1885 in Cheltenham. Given by the Hon.S.F. Tyser

Wedding dress made by Gladman & Womack, London, 1885. Cream silk satin trimmed with embroidered net and pearl beads. Worn by May Primrose to marry Major Herbert Littledale on 10 June 1885 in Cheltenham. Collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. Given by the Hon.S.F. Tyser

May Primrose married Henry Littledale at SS Phillip and James, Cheltenham. The couple then moved to India. Tragically, May died the following year on May 18 1886, following a riding accident. 

May Littledale's riding jacket of flannel trimmed with mohair and lined with sateen, designed and made by Messrs Redfern and Co., England, 1885-1886. Collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

May Littledale's riding jacket of flannel trimmed with mohair and lined with sateen, designed and made by Messrs Redfern and Co., England, 1885-1886. May died not long after this jacket was made for her. Collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Given by the Hon.S.F. Tyser

A family member living in New Zealand recently contacted me, thrilled to see that her Great Aunt’s dress was ‘out and about’. She commented that May was a gifted water colourist, and that the family still delight in her paintings. She also added a bit more information to the family story.  In their short time together Henry and May had a daughter, Elsie. In a bizarre coincidence, Elsie, at the age of 18, also met with a tragic end while out riding. She was struck by lightening.

Following May’s death in 1886, her belongings, including her wedding dress, were shipped back to England. The wedding dress remained in the family and was never worn again. Unaltered, it is a splendid example of the fashion of the time.

The dress was gifted to the V&A in 1990 along with several other of May’s garments. For display the dress underwent conservation treatment, and a contemporary chemisette, corset and bustle cage were constructed to bring the gown back to its full glory – the latter of course was required to support the wonderfully elaborate drapery of the skirt.

May’s family also gifted the above riding jacket  and the spectacular ball gown below to the V&A. As with May’s wedding gown it was made in 1885, and reveals May to be a very fashionable young lady indeed.

Ball gown consisting of a bodice and skirt in moiré silk with machine lace, probably made in Great Britain, ca. 1885. Collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. Given by the Hon.S.F. Tyser

Ball gown consisting of a bodice and skirt in moiré silk with machine lace, probably made in Great Britain, ca. 1885. Collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. Given by the Hon.S.F. Tyser

 

22 December 2011

New Botany Display in Nature Space – informing you about topical conservation issues.

Posted by Antony Kusabs under Kids, Plants | Tags: , , , , , , , |
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If you’ve visited Te Papa recently, and especially if you’ve brought children, you may have noticed some changes in the Nature Space Discovery Centre.  Part of this area was revamped in October to highlight the plight of wildlife affected by the RENA oil spill.

 This month, I have been working with Melanie Dash, Nature Space Supervisor, along with conservation, mount making, writing, interpretation, and installation staff to present a small Botany display.  This display is located opposite the RENA display in Nature Space on level 2.  Melanie and I have also sought images and advice from the Department of Conservation, Ngā Manu Trust, Auckland Council, and MAF.

New Display, Nature Space Discovery Centre, Level 2, Te Papa; Photo: Antony Kusabs, Te Papa.

New Display, Nature Space Discovery Centre, Level 2, Te Papa; Photo: Antony Kusabs, Te Papa.

 The display features one unusual fungus (Cordyceps robertsii) and two plant species, kauri (Agathis australis), and “flower of the underworld” (Dactylanthus taylorii).  The aim with the botany items, as with the RENA display, is to foster interest in current conservation issues.

 Kauri is one of New Zealand’s most notable tree species, but kauri forests in Northland, Great Barrier Island, and West Auckland are being infected by a soil borne fungus.  The fungus causes disease in kauri which excrete resin from their trunks, defoliate, and often die.  We can all help limit the spread of this disease by learning more about kauri dieback.

 Dactylanthus is the perfect plant to highlight conservation issues in New Zealand.  It’s current conservation status of ‘serious decline’ is due to habitat destruction, herbivory from possums and loss of pollinators (short-tailed bat) through predation.  In other words, a combination of the main causes of biodiversity decline in New Zealand.  The Department of Conservation is a good source of information on this species.

To find out more about the unusual fungus I mentioned, you’ll have to come to Te Papa.

 

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