Browsing by Subject "Textile conservation"

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Costume and “the copy” : defining authenticity in the analogue original, the reproduction, and the digital garment within the museum and archive
(2013-08) Morena, Jill Kristine; Galloway, Patricia Kay
A comparative examination of the original and reproduction Gone With the Wind costumes at the Harry Ransom Center is at the heart of this study, which proposes to trace the relationship between the analogue original costume, the replica garment, and the digital image reproduction. A discussion of definitions of authenticity and “the original” within such areas as conservation, film studies, and audience perception explores the questions: what is the role of the reproduction, and can it challenge the authority and “aura” of the original? This inquiry illustrates that authenticity is negotiated; it is not always fixed in a clear line ranging from “the real thing” on one side to “the copy” on the other. The study concludes with examining digital image reproductions of costume. The online digital database record can potentially reveal more than a face-to-face encounter with the object in a gallery space, illuminating the biography and history of the garment, changes in curatorial decisions and exhibition practice, and the experience of tactility and embodiment.
The "Curtain Dress" : construction, conservation, and analytical research
(2012-08) Villarreal, Nicole; Xu, Bugao; Jay, Cynthia K.
This thesis examines the condition of the “Curtain Dress” of Gone With the Wind (GWTW) with the purpose of advising a conservation plan that would allow its exhibit in 2014 as part of the 75th anniversary of the film. The dress has been stored since 1981 in the Harry Ransom Center (HRC) at the University of Texas at Austin as part of the David O. Selznick (DOS) Collection. The project addresses the book, the film, the creation of the dress, and what happened to it after filming was over. A collaborative team was formed including HRC staff, a conservator, and graduate students from the Textiles and Apparel Division at the University of Texas at Austin. The author of this study provided historical context, document analysis, construction evaluation, and fiber testing. A timeline for the book, film, and garment was established; communications from Selznick referencing the dress were analyzed; construction details were photographed and documented for reference; and colorimetry and spectroscopy techniques were used for fiber analysis.