The aim of this research is to analyse through practical and historical
investigation the manner in which Doublecloth in the twentieth century has been
transformed from a traditional woven technique to one of artistic innovation and
challenge. The first series of woven samples and historic enquiry concerns the
structure and pattern of doublecloth at a time when its industrial and craft-based
use was for the production of decorative and utilitarian woven fabrics. The
research focuses on the extent to which this technique was given aesthetic
credibility by its altered profile at the Bauhaus and the subsequent influence of the
writings and work of Anni Albers.
While the philosophy and products of the Bauhaus and the role of Walter
Gropius have been documented and widely debated the practice of textiles, and
the influence on it of gender, class and the hierarchical practice of craft, has
received little critical attention. The research seeks to redress this imbalance,
evaluating why the output of the textile workshops was undervalued artistically
and considered marginal to the products from other workshops. This leads to a
consideration of the interface between the practice of Fine Art and the practice of
Craft, between designing and making, between art and industry.
The woven samples are a process of experimentation against which the
historic stages can be tested and the technical constraints of contemporary
practice can be explained. This primary material leads to a consideration of the
new technology and the impact of Nuno doublecloth fabrics on the production of
doublecloth for the mass market. The evidence suggests that while new fabric
finishes and experimental pattern effects are desirable, the difficulties of hand
production are so prohibitive, that it is only with computer aided technology that
such ambitions can be met
Date of Award | 1995 |
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Original language | English |
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Awarding Institution | |
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Doublecloth: History, Technique, Possibilities.
Bell, D. M. (Author). 1995
Student thesis: PhD