Contact: Rachel Wenger
Phone: (330) 672-8046
   

   
Kent State University Museum Features
Exhibition on Indigo

What: The exhibition—Mood Indigo

When: September 27, 2007, to August 31, 2008

Where: Broadbent Gallery in Rockwell Hall on the corner of East Main and South Lincoln streets on the Kent Campus.

Background: The exhibition Mood Indigo will feature over sixty textiles and garments from around the world. From humble Japanese kimonos to French Haute Couture, the history of one of the oldest and most important dyes will begin with a study of the origin and global dissemination of the indigofera plant. Highly sought after because of its rare ability to resist fading from sunlight and water, and because of its ability to color most textiles without the use of a mordant, blue of indigo became a favorite of the masses, yet its rich color retained a mystical quality that is still with us today.

Artifacts on display will be drawn from the collections of the Kent State University Museum and the Western Reserve Historical Society. Non-western pieces will include such specimens as Persian block-printed jackets, Japanese tsutsugaki utilitarian fabrics such as wrapping cloths, kimonos and bed covers, a Central Asian mourning ikat robe, African tobe and several South East Asian resist dye textiles. Euro-American garments will feature utilitarian garments such as nineteenth-century interior gowns, a bathing costume and denim overalls. A magnificent 1949 ensemble by Christian Dior as well as pieces by Jacques Fath will bring couture garments to the exhibition.

Several North-East Ohio fiber artists and designers will also participate. Weavings, quilts and fiber art pieces will be part of the exhibition. Janice Lessman-Moss and Horst, previously featured in solo KSUM exhibitions in 2004, will be among the artists featured. Blue jeans and evening dresses—sometimes of new material, sometimes or recycled garments—will remind visitors that, in today's fashion world, indigo rules.

Join us for a free reception to mark the opening of the exhibition on Thursday September 27, 2007. The reception will be held in the Director's office between 7:30 and 8:30 p.m.

The Kent State University Museum is open Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.; Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8:45 p.m.; and Sunday from noon to 4:45 p.m. It is closed on Monday and Tuesday.

The museum is located in Rockwell Hall on the corner of East Main and South Lincoln streets on the Kent Campus. Special guided tours are available for groups by reservation. Free on-site motor coach parking is available.

For additional information about the Kent State University Museum, go to www.kent.edu/museum, or call (330) 672-3450.

LINK TO MOOD INDIGO WEBSITE

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