For lovers of historic clothing, the museum of the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City is a Mecca of sorts.
According to its Web site, the museum is “the repository for one of the largest collections of costume and textiles in the world, which it preserves for both study and exhibition purposes.” Its “collections have a dual function: as design laboratories used by students and professionals and as repositories where historically important objects can be safely preserved and exhibited for the education and aesthetic pleasure of present and future generations.”
Sarah Cosbey (left) and Julie Hillery show off some
of the historic costumes found in the growing collection.
Part of that legendary collection now has come to NIU to take permanent residence in the School of Family, Consumer and Nutrition Sciences.
“We always visit their museum. It's just unparalleled,” said Julie Hillery, a professor in the textiles, apparel and merchandising unit of FCNS, who routinely escorts her students to the Big Apple for study tours. “(Museum officials) mentioned that they get so many donations that they just don't know what to do with them, so I raised my hand.”
The price was right.
“We were so lucky because they sent us their pieces for the cost of shipping,” Hillery said. “These pieces are from the top designers in history. We could never afford this.”
Hillery and FCNS colleague Sarah Cosbey are undertaking the enjoyable task of unpacking, recording and storing the inventory that has been arriving steadily over the last three years.
Thanks to Shirley Richmond, dean of the College of Health and Human Sciences, they now have a room of closets and shelves in Wirtz Hall engineered to keep the atmosphere optimal for the preservation of clothing. The room also features a special machine that constantly monitors the temperature (70 degrees Fahrenheit) and relative humidity (60 percent).
“We are really thankful we got Dean Richmond's support to give us some money to get this room done,” Hillery and Cosbey both acknowledged. “She's very enthusiastic about the collection, and interested in it.”
The collection has dresses, shirts, coats, hats, shoes, sleepwear, undergarments and “even a few bustles” from the entire 20th century as well as some pieces dating to the Civil War era. One piece belonged to a princess. Some men's clothing also has arrived, including hats, shoes and some truly wild pants from the late 1960s.
Designers are represented from around the world, including Coco Chanel, Oscar de la Renta, Balenciaga, Versace and Claire McCardell, who is credited with creating American sportswear for women. “Claire McCardell died pretty young,” Cosbey said, “so I would imagine her pieces are hard to get.”
Cosbey said the costumes will bring classroom lessons to life.
“In our class that looks at the history of fashion, we can bring out examples. When we talk about a designer's influence in shaping dress, now we have their work we can show,” she said. “For classes in design innovation, this is inspiration. These are great illustrations of dressmaking techniques. When they see them, they really get that impact.”
The two professors are hoping to find more funding to better display the garments and to create an online exhibition so the entire university community can glimpse and enjoy the collection.
- Mark McGowan, NIU Public Affairs
- Photo by George Tarbay, NIU Media Services