Costume & Textiles
The Costume and Textiles collection holds about 2,500 textile objects and 5,000 costumes and accessories, ranging in time from Coptic to Contemporary, in size from thimbles to tapestries, and representing every continent. Many objects cross curatorial lines, like African American story quilts, Native American baskets, and contemporary fiber art.
Some holdings are unique, like paper gowns created by contemporary artists for the Atheneum’s Paper Balls of 1936 and 1966. Our world-renowned Lifar collection of Ballets Russes paintings and drawings is supplemented by Ballets Russes costumes. Two seventeenth- and eighteenth-century rare and beautiful tapestry series tell the Story of Psyche and the Story of Jason. The Atheneum is also the depository for Cheney Brothers textiles and keeper of the Cheney legacy. More...
More about Costume and Textiles: Drawing from the diverse collections, the department stages two exhibitions a year, rotating historic and contemporary costume with textiles. We have mounted exhibitions that complement others in the museum like: Bustles and Bows with Impressionists at Argenteuil; Petticoats and Pantalettes: Victorians Undressed with Colt Victorian Saga; The Art of French Fashion with Stuff of Dreams; and Hooking: Folk Art to Fiber Art with an exhibition of Wallace Nutting’s furniture. Other exhibitions such as Art Deco Style, Images of Childhood, Forbidden Stitch: Chinese Embroideries, Bonnets to Berets, and Traditions/Transitions: The Changing World of Fiber Art showcase the scope of the permanent collection.
While the collections are large, the staff is small, supplemented by invaluable volunteers drawn from the Costume & Textile Society of the Wadsworth Atheneum. This group, formed in 1984, provides educational, social, and creative opportunities to its members and moral and monetary support to the department. All members of the museum are welcome to join the Costume & Textile Society and participate in the lectures, teas, and travel that are part of their activities.
