{ Textiles in Culture By Jeremyn Lee

 I’m arguing that textiles are more than just fibers woven together but a documentation and representation of global history.  Textiles can hold powerful cultural meanings including ideas of religion, mythology, family bonds, and tradition  I interviewed Desiree Koslin and she also believes that textiles are have always held meaning, she states “  I interviewed Desiree Koslin and she also believes that textiles are have always held meaning, she states “textiles are used on the living body in so many ways, as uniform, as status symbol, as profession, and also on the dead body, of course, as well as receptacle of holy things, as back drop for rituals.”

 During the 17 th Century in Europe, textiles were a major part of religious artifacts.  Delicate embroidery was used on bibles and religious garments like clergy chasubles and Orphrey bands  Woven and Embroidered Tapestries were extremely popular textiles in showing religious imagery.  The Hunt of the Unicorn Tapestries have Christian Symbolism, the unicorn as Christ and the relationship with Virgin Mary In Europe

 Many textile arts started in East Asian countries  Throughout the History of China and Japan, many garments have elements that hold double meanings connecting to traditions, beliefs, and mythology.  Examples from China include the connection between depictions of bats and good luck, butterflies with long life and heavens with duality  Many textiles based on Taoist and Confucian philosophy East Asia

This robe from the Metropolitan collections is a great example of mythology placed into the textile of a garment. This is a robe from the late Edo period in Japan and features the Chinese Confucian belief of Filial Piety painted and embroidered onto the surface of the silk. It shows two men risking their life to save their mothers Japanese robe

  The Toraja people from South Sulawesi In Indonesia are an ethic group with a deep history   Textiles can be seen in all different forms in their culture through scarfs, wall hangings and headdresses.   each family has a collection of Saritas or ceremonial textiles that are hung representing details such as social status and major events.   Colors and patterns are all elements that characterize one weave from another.Toraja

Studio Project: For studio class I designed a 3 look collection based on Chinese, Japanese and Thai textile treatments and then constructed my Chinese design.

Blockprinting: this technique started in China dating back to 220 A.D. It was a method that was first used to print onto silk textiles. Characters, patterns, and images were all printed. Chinese Armor: Ancient Chinese armor was very elaborate. First starting in the Shang and Zhou dynasties, many of the armor was made from hard lacquered materials and leather layered and stitched together in a lamellar style.

Knot Tying: Chinese knotting is a popular Folk art decoration that started between AD. These knots were used as charms and embellishment on clothing and then later in the 20 th century as buttons