Historic and Ancient Textiles Affinity Group Meeting
September 25th, 12 pm EDT/9 am PDT
Email ltalbot@email.gwu.edu to register, or join the interest list on this page.
This meeting will feature the following two presentations:
Ottoman Cotton Double Cloth: Dervishes, Guildsmen, and Weavers
Textiles from the Ottoman Empire are often understood through the most sumptuous examples—crimson and gold velvets and brocades; but weavers in a number of centers made many types of fabrics. Several examples of cotton double-cloth, discussed in this talk, provide insight into both weaving practices beyond silk and life beyond the palace.
Amanda Phillips (DPhil, Oxon) is Associate Professor of Islamic Art and Material Culture at the University of Virginia. She has held fellowships in Istanbul, Berlin, Birmingham, and St Andrews. Her second book, Sea Change: Ottoman Textiles Between the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean, was published this year by the University of California Press.
Uyghur, Turkmen, and Turkish Feltmakers
This presentation will illustrate and explain Uyghur feltmaking processes of the 20th century (with fieldwork images), including a discussion of the risala or “craft manual” of the feltmakers and sheep shearers in Xinjiang – a Sufi liturgical document governing the life of every artisan. The talk will finish, time permitting, with Evliya Celebi’s industrial uses of felt other than coats, pants and hats for the military in the 17th century and a 16th century miniature painting depicting an imperial procession of artisans commemorating the circumcision of the Crown Prince Mehmet.
Christine Martens is an artist and independent researcher documenting and writing about textile traditions of Central Asia. She has conducted fieldwork in Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Mongolia and Northwest China, as a Fulbright Scholar, IREX fellow and Asian Cultural Council grantee.
The Historic and Ancient Textiles affinity group brings together people engaged in research on heritage textiles, including those recovered archaeologically, held in the collection of a community, university or museum.
The Textile Society of America’s Affinity Groups provide a forum to connect with others in the textiles field with similar interests. These virtual meetings are hosted on Zoom by the Textile Society of America. Group leaders facilitate informal conversations based around their group’s topic. Leaders may invite members of the group, or topic experts, to give short presentations as a launch point for discussion. In very large groups, members may split off into small breakout groups for easier connection.
Affinity group participation is not limited to TSA members. We encourage you to use them as a way to meet TSA members and find out more about the organization. Invite a friend or colleague who may be interested, too.
