LACMA Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Art Deco Textiles

26 Jul 2014 - 15 Feb 2015

Paul Poiret (France, 1879-1944)
Atelier Martine, France (1911-1929)
Textile Length, circa 1920
Cotton plain weave, block printed
Gift of Nelya Dubrovich and David Woodruff
ART DECO TEXTILES
26 July 2014 – 15 February 2015

In the first decades of the twentieth century, textile designers opened themselves up to a wide range of influences ranging from the brilliant color palette of the fauves and the angular forms of cubism to the the futurist concepts of movement introduced in futurist painting and by the radical dance group the Ballets Russes. Many of these designers were also painters, enabling them to ingeniously manipulate a basic vocabulary of floral and animal motifs with color, abstraction and texture to create an endless variety of organic and geometric forms.

These artist-designers ascribed to the modernist concept of unity of the arts—merging traditional fine arts with industrial design to make beautiful, yet functional objects for mass production. Many joined associations such as the Union des Artists Modernes (1929-58), and many participated in the highly influential Exposition des Arts Décoratifs and Industriels Modernes (from which the label Art Deco is derived) held in 1925 in Paris.

Featuring nine textiles selected from the museum's permanent collection, this installation captures the crossroads of craftsmanship and design, blurring the line between the fine and decorative arts.

The exhibition is curated by Kaye D. Spilker, Curator, LACMA's Costume and Textiles department. This exhibition was organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.