Behind the Scenes in Conservation: “Toile” Tales
by C. Obie Linn, Conservator of Textiles
7/18/2024
A story from the textile Conservation lab:
Megan Nauer, fashion and textile curatorial assistant, and I were doing condition checks of her selections for an upcoming display of contemporary Japanese designer fashion pieces. During our check, I noted that a 1999 jacket by Rei Kawakubo (Japanese, b. 1942) included some really wild seams (or lack thereof!) The sleeves flowed in a single cut of fabric from the body of the jacket. Wanting to do a little more analysis of this piece, I took the jacket back to the museum’s Conservation lab and created a toile, which is like a test version of a pattern used to study and perfect how an original flat pattern works. I finished my toile, and now check out these jacket/toile side-by-sides!
The original Rei Kawakubo jacket (left) and the toile made from a pattern taken from it (right), front views. With the hood up, the front of the jacket hangs straight vertically and the waistline evens out horizontally (although the toile didn’t cooperate very well here).
The original Rei Kawakubo jacket (left) and the toile made from a pattern taken from it (right), front views. With the hood up, the front of the jacket hangs straight vertically and the waistline evens out horizontally (although the toile didn’t cooperate very well here).
The original Rei Kawakubo jacket (left) and the toile made from a pattern taken from it (right), front views. With the hood up, the front of the jacket hangs straight vertically and the waistline evens out horizontally (although the toile didn’t cooperate very well here).
The original Rei Kawakubo jacket (left) and the toile made from a pattern taken from it (right), front views. With the hood up, the front of the jacket hangs straight vertically and the waistline evens out horizontally (although the toile didn’t cooperate very well here).
The original Rei Kawakubo jacket (left) and the toile made from a pattern taken from it (right), front views. With the hood up, the front of the jacket hangs straight vertically and the waistline evens out horizontally (although the toile didn’t cooperate very well here).
A flat pattern and toile can actually teach us a lot about the process used to design and create fashion art. My toile revealed several interesting things not apparent just by looking at the original jacket.
The main body of the jacket and the top half of the sleeves are cut in a single piece of fabric (on a fold), which is rather remarkable. Undersleeves and a hood (cut on a fold) complete the pattern. The separate cut of the undersleeves is necessary just to have enough fabric to get all the way around an arm, and the addition of the hood gives the ease needed for the neckline and shoulders to open up.
We also made a fun discovery while playing with the toile on a moving, living body. When you put the hood up, the whole jacket straightens out and hangs straight(!) a feature accentuated by the use of the plaid fabric with its perpendicular lines.
Studying a pattern like this can reveal little hints about how a piece was designed, changed, and created. The flat pattern here shows how Kawakubo changed the design from when the fabric was cut. The armhole seam is cut to fit in a more-or-less conventional fashion; however, the addition of the little pleat at the front of both seams appears to be a later addition (and one very hard to translate into a flat pattern!) It hints at the ways Kawakubo manipulated fabric to create innovative shapes and effects. Look for this and other pieces rotating on display in Gallery 136 in August!
Rei Kawakubo (Japanese, b. 1942), Jacket, Fall 1999 “Transforming Glamour” collection, wool, cotton, Museum purchase: The Cynthea J. Bogel Collection, Lawrence Archer Wachs Trust, 2016.188a
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