Joost Elffers

Susan Meller

Never before has a volume of such lavishness and magnitude been devoted to printed textiles. Covering the past two centuries, during which the Industrial Revolution drastically altered textile manufacture, Textile Designs presents a dazzling, comprehensive selection of the colourful patterned fabrics used for clothing and interior decoration. Here are the bright and hugely enjoyable materials of everyday life - the printed calicos and cottons, the flowered cretonnes and chintzes, the polka-dot silks and foulards. These are presented by pattern and motif, in contrast to the chronological displays in most books and museums. The dates and countries of origin are supplied wherever known. A rich and colourful resource in which glamour and usefulness are vividly combined, this visual encyclopaedia groups textiles by pattern under five headings: Floral, Geometric, Conversational, Ethnic, and Art Movements and Period Styles. Because of the world-wide interest in the subject, this international English-language edition includes translations of all the pattern names, as well as brief general introductions to the book in French, German, Italian, Spanish and Japanese. Textile Designs will not only be indispensable to professionals in the fashion and decoration fields everywhere, but will also be an inspiration to designers in the graphic and visual arts, a reference book for quiltmakers and collectors, and a delight for lovers of the beautiful.

200 Years of Patterns for Printed Fabrics Arranged by Motif, Colour, Period and Design

Textile Designs

The traditional textiles of Central Asia are unknown treasures. Straddling the legendary Silk Road, this vast region stretches from Russia in the west to China in the east. Whether nomadic or sedentary, its peoples created textiles for every aspect of their way of life, from ceremonial objects marking rites of passage, to everyday garments, to practical items for the home. There were suzanis for the marriage bed; prayer mats; patchwork quilts; bridal ensembles; bags for tea, scissors, and mirrors; lovingly embroidered hats and bibs; and robes of every color and pattern. Author Susan Meller has spent years assembling the 590 textiles illustrated in this book. She documents their history, use, and meaning through archival photographs and fascinating travelers’ narratives spanning many centuries. Her book will be a revelation to designers, collectors, students of Central Asia, and travelers to the region. Silk and Cotton is destined to become a classic.

Textiles from the Central Asia that Was

Silk and Cotton

Kate Fitz Gibbon

Russian Textiles showcases the gorgeous printed-cotton textiles created and manufactured in Russia and exported to Central Asia from approximately 1860 to 1960. More than 175 spectacular patterns spanning a variety of periods and styles, from Art Nouveau florals to Soviet-era agitprop, are featured. The people in these Central Asian countries--including Uzbeks, Tadjiks, and Turkmen--incorporated the brightly patterned material into their clothing, particularly their robes, and in their household items. Brief essays by the author and fellow textile experts describe the "social life" of the fabrics and the fascinating history of this merging of Russian, Western, and Central Asian aesthetic styles; Robert Kushner contributes a lively text on how an artist "sees" and is inspired by these designs. Complementing the pattern images are vintage photographs from the turn of the 20th century as well as beautifully detailed reproductions of the robes and other articles that were lined and embellished with these cloths. This is a must-have book for the inspiration library of every artist; professional fashion, interior, and product designer; crafter; and anyone with a love of extraordinary visual design. "Seldom does a new textile book invite one to view its subject matter in an entirely new light, from an entirely new perspective. Russian Textiles does just this. These cloths, with their boldly printed designs, are generally considered to be of little importance, and have been viewed with little contextual foundation. Russian Textiles: Printed Cloth for the Bazaars of Central Asia, changes this landscape and presents a collage of information and startling visuals. It fills a niche in our knowledge and appreciation of the dynamics of the textile trade in Central Asia, a niche that most of us were hardly aware was empty and needed to be addressed. Such is the groundbreaking nature of this book." - - Thomas Cole, HALI Magazine, Spring 2008 "Meller's book is a voyage of discovery...a joyous celebration of pattern and colour, and of a way of life in Central Asia" - - Brigid Keenan STEPPE Magazine, Summer 2008 "The intriguing title with its mingling of the commonplace and the exotic, neatly sums up the esoteric collecting field that fascinates Meller and sets her apart from the typical high-end textile hunter who is searching for silken ikats or woven carpets. According to Meller's view, machine-printed textiles qualify as 'fine art that happens to be for a commercial product.'" - Andrea DiNoto, American Craft Magazine, Oct/Nov 2008 "Russian Textiles is one of those rare and serendipitous books that can be judged by its cover. From first bold photo to final footnote, the bright, complex language of Russian trade cottons is given full voice in Susan Meller's new book." - - HAND/EYE, The Aid to Artisans Magazine, Summer 2008 "This is a beautiful book to be cherished for its look as well as its content." - - Frances Pritchard, SELVEDGE Magazine, September 2008

Susan Meller

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