SCALAMANDRE TEXTILES IN THE ART GALLERY
Beginning October 10th, the Illinois State Museum Art Gallery under the direction of Frances S. Ridgely, Curator of Art, features an exhibition of textiles used in the restoration of pre-revolutionary homes. From among the many fabrics which Franco Scalamandré has reproduced for restoration of historic American houses, the Scalamandré Museum of Textiles has assembled this exhibition of woven materials of the 17th and 18th centuries.
Among the 17th century homes are those of the two noted Quakers, “Pennsbury Manor”, the country estate of William Penn, and the John Bowne House, Flushing, New York. The Hudson River Valley Dutch era is shown in “Philipse Castle”, North Tarrytown, New York. New England is represented by the modest cottage of Paul Revere, Boston, Massachusetts. The Howland House, Plymouth, Massachusetts, is reputed to be the only house still standing where once was heard the foot treads of the Pilgrims, and there is the famous Buckman Tavern, Lexington, Massachusetts, which was headquarters of the Minute Men, April 19, 1775, the night that ushered in the War of Independence.
As the colonies increased in population and wealth in the succeeding century, the homes became more pretentious in their furnishings. The textiles used in the 18th century homes were the beautiful silk damasks, brocatelles, lampases, brocades, velvets, and toiles.
Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia, is represented by the Governor’s Palace, the abode of the royal governors appointed by the King; the Wythe House, residence of George Wythe, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and the Raleigh Tavern, the most famous hostelry of its time.
The town and plantation houses of the landed gentry include “Kenmore”, the home of George Washington’s only sister, Betty Washington Lewis, at Fredericksburg, Virginia; the Heyward-Washington House, Charleston, South Carolina; the Hammond-Harwood House, Annapolis, Maryland; the Ford Mansion, Morristown, New Jersey, Washington’s headquarters at the time Lafayette arrived to bring the glad tidings that France was sending an army to help the American cause. There are a number of others equally as famous. The owners of these houses were the famous colonists who, with the exception of a few who remained royalists, played prominent roles in the struggle for freedom. They are the patriots who obtained their niche in history as having fought and struggled in making America a free and great nation.
Some of this atmosphere of the exciting past comes to the Museum with this exhibition of textiles from these old homes. The walls of the Museum Gallery hung with five-yard lengths of these colorful textiles radiate a galaxy of colors in shimmering and lustrous silks. Framed charts are included with photographs of exteriors and interiors of each house. A brief resume of the lives of the owners, the period of architecture, and a description of color schemes of the rooms and contents are also given.
It is an exhibit of interest and educational value to every American, and alike, instructive to interior decorators and students of interior design. College and public school students studying American history will be enlightened as to how their famous forefathers lived.