Conserving, Storing and Mounting Hats, Caps, and Various Headgear

By Barbara Owens, SAC staff

Hats and head coverings are a broad category. They can be large like a chapeau, tall like a shako, tight like a fez, slouch like a beret, have a brim like a kepi, be rigid like a helmet, have a display of feathers like a headdress, and have all sorts of composite accessories, like metal buttons, leather straps, plumes, silk lining, wool tassels, or grosgrain ribbons, to name a few. The conservation of a hat is a complex task; hats can be composed of many materials, and have very different purposes or uses.

This blog entry will focus on a few military style hats, which Spicer Art Conservation recently conserved and mounted at for storage or for display in an upcoming exhibit. Each hat required a problem-solving approach to address various concerns, including:

• Recreating a 3-dimensional hat from a flattened hat 
• The sometimes excessive and "mixed media" decoration on hats
• Weak and vulnerable areas of hats, many naturally occurring along folds or creases
• Accessory pieces, like plumes (which are a separate artifact), but are displayed together
• Creating exhibit mounts and storage mounts to fit the needs of the individual artifact

Before treatment photograph of a very flattened chapeau. The hat itself was quite compressed with weakened areas in
the wool at the pointed ends. The decorative embellishments, particularly the ribbon at the front were also quite
flat and creased from their previous method of storage.

Decorative elements:
Hats, particularly those worn by military officers, feature decorative elements such as metal pins, insignia, or embroidery. Some hat decoration is intended to represent the wearer's military branch, company or unit. These decorative elements can be considered mixed-media, composed of various types of fabric materials, metals, or metallic thread.

A detail image of an Officer's Chapeau, c 1810, shows the various materials involved in its
construction; silk ribbon, wool, braided elements, ribbon with metallic thread, metal eagle.

The hat below (an officer's chapeau circa 1832) composed mainly of beaver pelt is complex and highly decorative. The front, or cock, of the hat features taffeta ribbon, grosgrain ribbon ruffle, thickly embroidered knotted braiding and embellished pieces (including unique horse shoe shapes), metal button, and gold-toned metal eagle with a banner pin above, which reads: "E Pluribus Unum". At each of the cocked ends (not visible in photo) are thick tassels of metallic thread.

A detail image of the complex decoration. During cleaning of the metal elements,
the other fabric decorative pieces must be protected with a barrier material.

Hats, as 3-Dimensional artifacts almost always require that they be conserved and stabilized simultaneously. The mount of a hat therefore should provide overall support to the hat, especially any accessory item or overhanging piece, like a brim. Hats should not only be placed on 3-D mounts for display, they should be stored as a 3-D artifact as well.

Each hat that is conserved at SAC is custom fitted with an internal support created from carved ethafoam and covered with pre-washed 100% cotton stockinette. The hat with its internal support are placed on a handling tray. It is the tray that moves in and out of the storage box, therefore reducing or eliminating the handling of the hat itself (see photo below).

The chapeau, on its handling tray, easily slides in and out of its
 archival storage box. The box is custom made and features smooth fabric
covered ethafoam blocks strategically placed to provide gentle support and
stability for the chapeau while in its box. The box is not only a
great storage container, but is perfect for travel.

Plumes:
Plumes are a hat accessory that often accompany shako or chapeau style hats. The plumes are created from feathers, but can also be more of a long flowing item, created from horse hair. When these plumes were originally part of the hat, they were originally fastened to the hat by being slid into an applied sleeve located at the brim, hat band area, inside the crown, or sometimes tucked behind the decorative elements at the front of the hat. Artifact hats, especially those that are quite fragile, are no longer able to support the plume as they once did. Plumes that are original to the hat, like the one featured in the image below, can be quite rare. These fragile items require their own treatment and stabilization (see image below).

(LEFT) This feathered plume from an officer's chapeau, circa 1810, was quite fragile. The plume requires its own stabilization and encapsulated in a fine net to secure the small brittle ends of the feathers that were prone to breaking off. It will also be supported with a custom made Vivak mount to hold it in the proper position and angle (RIGHT). The accompanying hat (see below) was no longer able to support the plume as it had originally been inserted into a fabric sleeve on the reverse of the hat's front. 

Display mounts to provide optimal support and incorporate accessories:
As mentioned in the above section about plumes, accessories which were original to the hat, may not be able to be incorporated as they originally were intended. The plume discussed above had been held onto the hat with a fabric sleeve (see photo below).

Before treatment photograph highlighting the sleeve that originally held the base
of the plume. Both the sleeve and the hat could no longer perform its original
function of supporting the plume. Also, the plume could not be held on the hat
in such an unsupportive way. Another method to display the plume and hat
together needed to be found. Also notice the fragmented
pieces of the feathers, indicating their easy breakage.

The sleeve had been sewn to the hat with threads that were now loose and quite fragile. Placing the plume back into this sleeve would weaken the sleeve and place the the hat at risk for tearing, and the plume at risk for falling, therefore causing potential damage to both artifacts. (Additionally, the plume could no longer be displayed with such minimal support to its base).

The solution was in the mount. The creative mount for the plume to be seamlessly displayed with the chapeau was fabricated by BRIGID MOUNTMAKING. The unique, custom mount would address the display of the two artifacts together, the full support of the hat (both inside the crown and the weak pointed ends), and the delicate plume, which required encapsulation in a fine net to minimize the loss of the breaking barbs of each feather, but also required a custom made Vivak cradle to hold and support it in the proper, supportive, position. Vivak is a polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG). It is clear and is easily bendable with low heat, perfect for subtle shaping needed for such purposes as this.

The wooden base and body of the plume is supported by the custom made
display mount. The lower curved portion of the plume mount is designed to
wrap around the edge of the chapeau and fit directly into the support mount
constructed for the  chapeau. Once placed, the plume mount is secured with a
metal screw. The gold colored portion of the mount will slide into a receiving
portion, placed within the hat display mount.

A close-up view of the junction of the plume mount and the hat mount. Here, the
lower portion of the plume mount is shown as it fits into the hat mount and is
secured with a screw. The black fabric is wrapped around a custom made ethafoam
form, which will provide support when the hat is placed onto the display mount.
Inside, the square receiving end has been built into the mount.  

The two display mount pieces: the hat mount (before the hat has been placed on it)
and the plume mount, as they fit together. Now, the two-piece mount is ready
for the Chapeau and ready for exhibit!

The two-pieces of the display mount work in synchronicity. The internal body of the hat is supported by the cotton stockinette covered portion, which fits directly inside of the chapeau. The black display fabric covered base will provide the support to the fragile pointed ends of the hat.

Once the hat has been placed on its display support, the plume mount is slid into its receiving end and secured. The plume mount, while placed close to the hat, does not rub or rest on the hat in any way, and is not distracting to the viewer. The hat is now ready for exhibit.

After treatment photograph of the exhibit ready
mounted hat and plume.

Material composition:
We have conserved hundreds of hats at SAC. The hats have been made from leather, wool, cotton, silk, beaver pelt, molded plastic, synthetic textiles, and every combination of fabrics. Each fabric behaves differently based on its age, its past use, the way it has been displayed or stored, and how much light it has been exposed to over time.

The hat below is an officer's foraging cap from the American Civil War, featuring a quatrefoil design applied with soutache braiding. The hat features a variety of materials including, leather, wool, silk, brass, metallic thread, and velvet pile fabric.

When a hat is composed of many different fabrics and materials, each piece must be considered individually when approaching the overall treatment of the hat and its needs for stabilization. For example, the close-up of the foraging cap (see below) shows where the crown, composed of wool, meets a decorative hat band of velvet, which is further embellished with a leather hat band with brass buttons. On the inside, it is stitched to a sweatband made of tanned leather.

A hat like this with its various parts must be mounted to support all of the pieces of the crown, but the mount must support the heavy but fragile brim. Below, the underside of the supported hat can be seen. Here the brim support, was mad using Vivak and then covered in black cotton fabric, is attached to the base of the mount. It is positioned just under the brim of the hat to provide stability and support (while always using only archival materials).

Hat brims, whether they are just at the front of the hat (like a baseball style hat), or if they extend outward around the entire circumference of the hat (like a cowboy hat, or a sombrero) must have stability provided to this overhanging area. Without stability, the area of attachment of the brim to the hat grows weaker or in some cases separates from the hat entirely, such was the case with the leather shako hat below (see image below).

The shako and its brim; here in two pieces that needed reattachment
and increased stability. There are times when treatment alone is not sufficient.  

The 200+ year old leather shako and its leather brim required a reunion. But how to keep them together in a more supportive way? The shako had been mended before, but the weight of hat and brim and their precarious intersection were factors that would lead ultimately to a possible failure in the repair, especially if the hat was improperly supported during handling. The answer once again, was in creating custom formed full brim support of Vivak covered with black cotton fabric, and placing it under the brim, directly attached to the internal support materials (see photo below):

The leather shako, circa 1810, the crown of the hat is fitted with a custom made
archival support to give dimension to the inside of the hat. The brim support is
made of Vivak, shaped to allow the brim sit as it naturally would, while relieving
 any pressure to the repair.

THINK HOLISTICALLY:
Remember that hats are 3-dimensional, and keep in mind that they can only achieve 3-dimensionality with support and must be properly mounted to maintain their shape. At Spicer Art Conservation we constantly strive to provide the best conservation of an artifact, which includes the repair or stabilization of the item, the best way to allow the item to be fully understood, studied or displayed, while keeping handling to a minimum. Our mounting methods, whether for storage or for display are holistically considered to provide full support of the artifact, enable minimal handling, and when possible enable seamless transition from storage to exhibit.

Read more about choosing the right filling materials for your hat in our former blog post "Supporting textile artifacts without tissue paper - save a tree!", where we discuss the downfalls of stuffing hats (and other 3-D artifacts) with tissue paper.

Make sure you visit Brigid Mountmaking's website to see the amazing work that they do.

Are there hats in your collection that need care?  Contact us by phone or email, we are happy to help.

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Gwen Spicer is a conservator in private practice who is a recognized expert in the care of textiles, object, paper and upholstered artifacts.

Conserving, then mounting a pair of Leather Gloves with magnets

It has been a while since we at SAC have blogged about magnets. But that is not because magnets have not been on our mind! In fact, we have been quite busy working with them. So we thought that we would share a magnetic mount that we have recently designed. And with it, discuss the idea of using a Universal Standard Language to discuss magnetic mounts, so that they can be understood and replicated by other conservators and mount makers.

The pair of gloves to be mounted had been worn to Abraham Lincoln's funeral on April 19, 1865 in Washington, DC by Robert Van Valkenburgh, a United States Congressman from New York and a Union Army officer.

The gloves are Paris made, as indicated from a stamp that appears inside one glove. They have been owned by the New York State Military Museum for many years and had been in a museum display in the early half of last century. For their upcoming exhibition, the New York State Millitary Museum wanted them again to be included in a short-term display. These 150+ year old gloves are made of fine thin leather, and both gloves together are quite light in weight.

After some humidification, a mount was created where one glove was palm down and the other was palm up. The gloves were quite stiff and misshaped from being wrapped and stored flat. Holes were present from a previous mounting method. The once black color of the outside of the leather had begun to powder and flake, mainly along the fold lines. Due to their fragility, a mount using magnets was created.

Once the shape of the gloves were determined, an internal form using Nomex was created for the fingers and palm for each glove. The thumb was supported separately. Attached to the Nomex were stitched two "L" brackets. They were positioned to support two of the fingers (image below).

The "L" brackets were selected to also support the fingers, as well as the palm of the glove

Nomex layer with the attached steel brackets, also covered with foiled-paper tape.

The brackets were both stitched with button hole thread (top photo above) and covered with foiled paper tape (directly above). The edges of the brackets were outlined with Volara framing tape in order to cushion the hard edges of the steel bracket. This was to be the side that faced the mount. The visible side of either glove was carefully padded out with layers of 1/4" Volara foam.

Internal support and the Glove

Much can be discussed about the nuances of the internal support and the creation of the mount. Both of which are also important, but for this blog, it is the magnet system that we are focusing on.

Block shaped, 1/2"x3/8"x1/8", N42 Neodynimium rare earth magnets were used and secured to the mount. I have begun to think that magnets should be secured to the mount rather than incorporated with the artifact.  For one, the mount can be reused, and having the magnet positioned in place could potentially be useful. Where as if installed in the artifact's internal structure, the magnet might stay there. With the cost of rare earth magnets increasing, and also with the unknown long-term effects, magnets kept within artifacts might be ill advised. Also, keeping an "active device" such as a magnet inside the artifact may cause inadvertent harm. What I mean is that we at SAC often speak of the "one-mindedness" of magnets. Magnets are always "on", and they will jump to a receiving metal as quickly as possible. If you did not know that an artifact had a magnet inside of it you could place it on or near something you actually do not want it to magnetically attach to.

Magnets glued to the Plexiglas and covered with foiled-paper tape.

Positioned magnets with the Volara layer. Thin Volara
was added over the magnets to fill the recess. 

Before the show fabric has been placed on the volara, but here is how the gloves will be positioned when they are displayed.

In each of the papers I have published, or any of the presentations I have given, I talk about magnetic systems as being a three part system; 1) the strength of the magnet, 2) the ferromagnetic material and 3) the gap. As a means to begin to clearly illustrate my system to others, a form of language to describe the system is necessary. How do we begin to think about and write the three parts of a system? Below is my attempt to begin a discussion. The mount description is in brackets and begins with the bottom most layer first. The artifact is listed in italics and the internal structure within the artifact follows within the braces (aka squiggly brackets).

1. The position of the magnet is indicated by an asterisk. The grade and size of the magnet is in parentheses and follows the asterisk: *(grade, shape, size)
2. The ferromagnetic material, is underlined, it's gauge and/or thickness follows in parentheses.
3. The gap layers are in bold.

[Plexiglas, *(N42, block-1/2"x3/8"x1/8"), foil paper tape, Volara tape, show cover fabric] artifact (thin calf leather), {foil paper tape, steel bracket (1/16" thickness), Nomex}

Is this word diagram of mount layers (illustrated below) sufficiently explained so that another conservator or preparator can recreate this magnetic mount? What part of it is not understandable? How does this need to be changed?

Cross section of magnetic mount for gloves.

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Gwen Spicer is a textile conservator in private practice.  Spicer Art Conservation specializes in textile conservation, object conservation, and the conservation of works on paper.  Gwen's innovative treatment and mounting of flags and textiles is unrivaled.   Her current research focuses on the use of rare earth magnets in conservation treatments.  To contact her, please visit her website.

Learn more about magnets and their many uses in the new publications Magnetic Mounting Systems for Museums and Cultural Institutions. Available for purchase at www.spicerart.com/magnetbook.

Textile Conservation of First Lady Angelica Van Buren's dresses

By Barbara Owens, SAC staff

There is so little known about this intriguing First Lady. We discussed at length the mystery of Angelica Van Buren's wedding gown in our post on August 1, 2012. The dress, which is the subject of that post, is said to be her wedding gown. If you want to read about the connection (or lack of) between that dress and the dress she wears in her official white House portrait, visit our blog post here.

This stunning bodice is truly eye-popping. The color is still
amazingly vibrant, this dress must have been a show-stopper.

In that post, the information we discovered about Angelica portrayed her as a warm gentle spirit who wholeheartedly accepted her role as First Lady, despite her young age and despite the fact that she did not have to take on this responsibility. At 21 years old, she agrees to serve as first lady at the request of her widowed father-in-law, President Martin Van Buren.

Angelica is young and beautiful. She brings a fresh look to the White House, and although she will be fiercely criticized by Van Buren's foes as being aristocratic-like, she is nonetheless the daughter of a hugely successful southern plantation owner. She is wealthy in her own right and has a clear style befitting a woman of her upbringing and social status.

This style became very clear to us at SAC when we were asked to re-house several dress sets belonging to Angelica. Each of the components of these dresses were beautifully made, the colors (especially the purple dress) were wonderful. And even though they have faded in the 170 or so years since she wore them, you could easily imagine Angelica making her official entrance as hostess of a White House dinner, with all heads turning to see this fashionable young lady.

The matching bodice to the bodice pictured above and skirt of the exact pattern/color. Here you can more
clearly see the white dots in the fabric, these are not as prominently visible in the other purple pieces.
Here you can also see the shattered silk under the armpits.

The components of the dress sets are in fair to poor condition, with the most compromised parts being the parts soiled from perspiration. In these areas the silk was shattering and much of the fabric here was vulnerable to loss.

The dress sets are referred to as such because each consists of pieces that would be put together as a set to make a dress. Each of the components we treated clearly went with another piece. The purple skirt matched the purple bodices and the black bodice, the pink silk skirt matches the the pink silk bodices, and could easily be paired with the black velvet bodice. The only bodice that does not seem to have perfect match is the purple bodice with the ribbons at the sleeve. Its matching skirt may no longer exist.  Also, it seems to be of a different era than the other dress components, perhaps that is why it just does  not "go" with them. But interestingly, it bears a very strong resemblance to the wedding dress (pictured below).

This particular bodice did not have a skirt which accompanied it. However, it seemed to "go" with the
 black velvet bodice pictured below. The "pink" bows at the sleeve had a matching bow that had been
detached from any of the pieces.  Perhaps it was meant to be placed at the front of this bodices.

The dresses were only to be re-housed for storage. Each dress component received a padded support to reduce the folds and therefore crushing of the dress. The dress sets were placed into acid free boxes with slings to reduce handling while examining or moving the dress components from their storage boxes.

The dresses in this "set" were labeled as such because many had interchangeable parts. The pink bodice with poof sleeves (below) is the same fabric/color as the bodice to the left. Each could be worn with the pink skirt, in the same color/fabric.

Here three of the bodices are grouped to be stored together.  

An up-close photo of the sleeve of the purple bodice. Here you can clearly see previous
repairs,the staining from perspiration, and most importantly the detail of the fabric.

The exact date that these dresses were made or worn is not known for sure. Angelica serves as First Lady from 1839 to 1841 and then spends several years at the Van Buren estate in Kinderhook, New York, which is the location of the National Historic Site. When one looks at the style of the dresses and compares them to standard fashion "plates" of the 1830's they are clearly lacking the "leg-of-mutton" sleeve of the early 1830's, but certainly take on the late 1830's look as indicated below.

This is a wonderful image from the Museum of Costume. Notice the model with her back to us shows
that infamous "leg-of-mutton" sleeve, while the model who faces us shows a gown silhouette that
could easily be in keeping with the dress components from the Van Buren NHS.

The 1840's fashion standards may be more clearly met with these dresses. As Susan Jarrett writes on the history of Fashion and Dress section of the website www.maggiemayfashions.com: "By the mid 1840s, the shape of the skirt took on a bell shape and stiff crinolines along with multiple layers of petticoats became necessary to aid in lifting the circumference of the skirt. Double flounced skirts became quite popular. Bodices of the late Romantic period typically had basque waists (or elongated waistlines which ended in a point at the front). Necklines were round, V-shaped, and wide for both day and evening wear." This description seems to best fit the dress sets above. But below is an 1855 painting by Franz Xaver Winterhalter with some similar necklines to what we see in the wedding dress or purple bodice with bows. Hmmm…the mystery continues.

Keep in mind that Angelica's dresses are at about 170 years old. They were clearly cared for, and are a glimpse into a relatively unknown life of the 8th First Lady of the United States. While the dresses will need to undergo full conservation treatment in the future, they are now being housed and stored in a way which will not hasten that treatment. Their padded supports and archival storage materials will allow for their safe keeping. 

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Gwen Spicer is a textile conservator in private practice.  Spicer Art Conservation specializes in textile conservation, object conservation, and the conservation of works on paper.  Gwen's innovative treatment and mounting of flags and textiles is unrivaled.   To contact her, please visit her website.

A high school sweater goes to war

by Barbara Owens, SAC staff

Recently SAC was asked to treat a high school sweater. While that may not seem terribly remarkable or interesting, this was no ordinary sweater. As with most artifacts that seem ordinary, it is the story that accompanies the artifact that makes it unique, special or irreplaceable.

This particular sweater had been on display for roughly 80 years, and in that time the once blue and gold sweater had faded significantly to a dull purple from light exposure, it had also been feasted on by insects. Accompanying the sweater was a black and white photograph of a young soldier, who was the original owner of the sweater.

The light damage to this sweater is quite severe, even the original blue which composed the body of the sweater is no longer visible at all.  You can see exactly how the arms were folded forward, and below the "N" is where the photograph of Walter Allison was affixed.

The sweater had been well worn and required some compensation where the holes had created weakness. It was also in need of proper support and protection from light.

The owner of the sweater, is the Newburgh Free Academy High School, located in Newburgh, New York where it will be on display in a new case at the entrance of the school. It had been on display for about 80 years outside the Athletic Department and brought out at every memorial service and the story is told to the students.

The sweater belongs in such an honorable place because the owner of the sweater, 20 year-old and recent high school graduate, Walter Allison packed his wool Newburgh Academy football sweater into his pack as he left for his tour as an enlisted soldier in the US Army, arriving in France on May 23, 1918. The United States had entered World War I in April 1917, and many young men were shipping off to Europe to serve their country. Many of these soldiers knew that they were going to be fighting in areas where harsh winter conditions would exist, and that the uniform they were provided with might not be enough to keep them warm. Hence, Allison brought along his wool varsity sweater in the hope that it would help insulate him against the freezing winter.

Walter Allison 1898 - 1918

Walter Allison was awarded the purple heart for his courageous service. His award was given posthumously following the battle of the Hindenburg Line, where he was killed in combat. The conditions of war are harsh. As you can see first hand when you visit the Purple Heart Hall of Honor, their display of war is encompassing of imagery that displays an up-close encounter with the realities of war.

Company roster from the 107th, Walter Allison is listed in the lower left as a private first class, killed in action, September 29th.  The losses the 107th endured that day were numerous, as can be seen from this page.  For more information about the 107th, please see the website: http://www.oryansroughnecks.org

When a soldier died, the items he left behind were often recycled back to soldiers on the battlefields who desperately needed them. One such thing, was Allison's football sweater. When it reached it's recipient, Chester Greatsinger, he recognized it immediately. By sheer coincidence, the sweater was passed on to Allison's schoolmate, and in that poignant moment, Greatsinger knew that Allison was dead and that the sweater, carried across the ocean from Newburgh, New York to the battlefields of France, was now his. Greatsinger completed his tour of duty and returned home with the sweater, where he presented it to Newburgh Academy Athletic Association in 1919.

Soon to be hanging at the Newburgh Free Academy, the sweater is conserved and will be able to tell it's story of bravery, the harsh realities of being a soldier, and how a sweater found it's way across the world and from one soldier to another and then back home again.

We at SAC hope you have a peaceful Memorial Day and that you keep in mind the men and women of the United States military and the sacrifices so many of them have made.

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Gwen Spicer is a textile conservator in private practice.  Spicer Art Conservation specializes in textile conservation, object conservation, and the conservation of works on paper.  Gwen's innovative treatment and mounting of flags and textiles is unrivaled.   To contact her, please visit her website.

Conserving a Vaudeville contortionist costume, certainly a one-of-a-kind textile

by Barbara Owens, SAC staff

The Maine Historical Society is perhaps not the place you would expect to find contortionist costumes from the Vaudeville circuit of the late 1800's, but is in fact the place you will find just such a collection.

Items in this group are associated with Charles Cheltra who was born in 1859 in Ashland, Massachusetts and lived and later died in Portland Maine in 1933. The items are from his career (from about 1881 to 1888) as a “contortionist” who traveled the northeast performing his craft.

Cheltra in one of his contortionist costumes.  Photo courtesy of Maine Historical Society.

Sometime around the age of 21 Charles performed as a contortionist in theaters, dime museums, and with minstrel and vaudeville shows. Early advertisements labeled him “the India Rubber Man,” and in 1885 he was listed as a Champion Heavy Weight Contortionist of America. During this period, Cheltra appeared throughout the northeast – mostly from New York to Boston. The last notice of performances is around 1888 – when Cheltra was 29 years old.

Charles Cheltra is listed here in this advertisement from Geneva New York in 1883.  Under his name it reads: "The wonderful India Rubber Man in his astounding feats".

Not many items exist from contortionists of the vaudeville era.  Harvard's Houghton Library, New York State Museum, and the Witte Museum in Texas are only a few of the institutions who hold artifacts like these in their collections.

When The Maine Historical Society contacted SAC about treating some of the costumes belonging to Cheltra, we were so excited. First of all, because we had never treated contortionist costumes, secondly, costumes of this era are so interesting. The colors are often bright and decorated with interesting embellishments, and the contortionist outfits belonging to Mr. Cheltra are just as interesting.

Cheltra shows off his flexibility.  Photo courtesy of Maine Historical Society.

In all ancient civilizations the "bender" was a present figure. Evidence of contortionists exists in both pictorial and sculptured forms from ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome. This evidence makes it clear that the art existed from the very beginnings of civilization.

Yoga may be a more familiar "modern" form of contortion. Yoga is from the Hindu religion where, during daily meditation the Yoga practitioner assumes various contortion poses.  Each pose, if done correctly, provides mind and body benefit, but most importantly, a spiritual fulfillment.

Modern contortionists appear to be able to bend in a way that may suggest they are free of bones, and in fact, the only limitation in the art of contortion is the natural range in flexibility of a contortionists back bone. Contortionists are divided into to categories: the frontbenders who can easily bend forward at the waist and the backbenders who can bend the spine backward in what appears to be an unnatural way. In fact, photographs of modern contortionists show some back benders with there heads resting on their feet. Apparently you cannot be in both categories, as it is nearly impossible of to find a contortionist that is both a frontbender and a backbender.  Each takes tremendous preparation and a theatrical costume to accommodate each move.

The modern contortionist is probably most familiar to many of us in the ubiquitous Cirque du Soleil. In the image above, the performer is portraying a bug and the costuming is extraordinary. While the art of contortion has been around for centuries, the costuming continues to evolve (Above Photo: OSA Images). Compare the above image, c 2011 to the below image c. 1911 

New York State Archives is home to the collection of the husband and wife contortionists, Harry and Friede DeMarlo.  Above Friede poses in her frog costume, she is billed here as "The Original Frog Lady".  (Photo from New York State Archives). 

Cheltra is not just part of Maine's collection. He is also mentioned in the Kattenberg collection, which is  perhaps the largest collection of contortionist memorabilia (including a large costume collection), and is housed at the Houghton Library at Harvard. Looking at the costumes in their catalog, many are similar to the Cheltra costume we are treating here at SAC. Unlike modern costumes made of 4-way stretch lycra, the costumes from Cheltra's time were often created from wool, and the sequins of yesteryear are small disks of metal.  Wool costumes of course come with the possibility of damage from insects, and the metal disks dull over time.

Below are the Before Treatment images of the Cheltra Costumes as they arrived at SAC. While the colors may have faded slightly, the dramatic effect of the bold lines and bright hues is still evident. The other obvious feature one notices when examining these costumes is that they were well used. Cheltra worked hard in these costumes. These particular items are all hand made, mainly composed of wool with velvet inserts, and are in good condition. Clearly the Cheltra family, who donated them to Maine Historical Society, cared for these items and kept them carefully, an important factor in the keeping of any textile.

The before treatment photo featuring the body of the Cheltra "Black Costume". This top is beautifully
decorated with inserts of bright velvets, set on gold colored wool flannel. At the bottom, a safety pin
remains attached. The red  ribbon in the center was attached front-to-back, and kept the shirt in the trunks.

Front of the Black Costume.

Obverse side of the Trunks  from Cheltra's "black costume". This costume is a
bit more elaborate, with felt and velvet inserts. The metal sequins are
blackened near the leg openings.

Before treatment close-up of  Cheltra's green trunks. The green "body" of the trunks are wool knit, while the red insert is wool felt, the metal sequins are hand stitched. (photo: SAC)

After treatmentclose-up of Cheltra's green trunks. 

Cheltra and others worked hard at their craft and clearly they worked hard at making costumes to be noticed in. We are so excited to treat these 3 amazing pieces from what remains of his costume collection.

The after treatment photo of all three pieces, complete with their padded supports.

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Gwen Spicer is a textile conservator in private practice.  Spicer Art Conservation specializes in textile conservation, object conservation, and the conservation of works on paper.  Gwen's innovative treatment and mounting of flags and textiles is unrivaled.   To contact her, please visit her website.

A Ukrainian Boudoir Doll

by Nicolette Cook, SAC Conservation Technician

Recently, while working on a striking Ukrainian doll, it got me thinking about the function of dolls and why they hold such fascination for many of us. The doll was affectionately named "Katya" by the current owner's grandmother. Her grandmother lived near the cultural center of Lviv in western Ukraine and was given Katya in the 1890s. Katya's cloth body joins together her head, hands and high-heeled feet of composition, a material made mostly from the mixture of sawdust, glue and wood flour. She is still wearing her original hand-embroidered traditional costume and is adorned with a beaded floral and velvet headdress with embroidered silk ribbons flowing down her back.

Up-close of "Katya" before treatment.  The owner wanted the make-up substantially toned-down to be closer to the original that she remembered as a chi

However, according to her owner, the bold make-up she wore was not original, as she informed us the doll was restored in NYC in the 1960s. This was evident by the way the dark brown eyeshadow was inexpertly applied. Otherwise, she was in remarkable condition for an antique over 120 years old and only came to the studio to repair the garishly applied make-up as well as her detached foot.

Katya, after treatment.

Close-up of Katya, after treatment.

Children have played with dolls and doll-like toys for millennium. The first were simple, vague figures made of clay, wood, stone, bone, cloth and other natural materials, presumably for ritualistic purposes. In contrast today, dolls are made out of modern plastics and porcelain composites and are barely more than commercial novelty products of a materialistic world. 

Unlike our conception of dolls today, especially the "baby doll", the oldest dolls were "lady" dolls representing well-dressed women, such as Katya. Not unlike the notion of dolls today, "lady" dolls were not only play things but were also meant to prepare young girls for their later roles as wives and mothers. However, beginning in the early 20th century, doll-making strayed away from the conservative towards the risqué, with the growing popularity of the boudoir doll. Before the 1900's, dolls wore the latest costumes and followed the fashionable trends of European courts and represented the proper European woman. They were not toys, but instead were carried by fashionable women of the time. They were posed on sofas, chairs, beds and carried at balls, dances and other social events.

Antique Boudoir Doll, Wax Over Composition
Lady Doll, Circa 1860's

Yet the traditional style did continue into the early 20th century. Consider the boudoir doll we treated in 2011. This example of a lady doll, also dating to the early 1900's, shows a figure in a conservative silk gown, but her hair and make-up are distinctly modern with dark red lips and bright blue eyeshadow. Though from an later era than Katya, this doll was in worse shape when she came to us. Her composite face was flaking away and several holes were present in her silk garment. We consolidated and inpainted her face, filled in where her hair had thinned and mended the tears.

Boudoir Doll, Composite, silk and cotton,
early 20th C

Even though this conservative style survived into the new century, the modern woman, as well as her boudoir doll, was rapidly changing. The new contemporary aesthetic of shortening hairstyles and skirts, the freeing of the body from the constricting corset, as well as striking cosmetics, gave rise to the flapper and smoking dolls of the era. Their popularity grew as symbols of the provocative life of the 1920's when Prohibition was in full swing.

Flapper with her boudoir doll, circa 1920s

However while dolls in America were following the styles of the modern age, European dolls somewhat maintained their traditional roots. Like Katya, with her conservative dress and her bold make-up, the European doll did not reflect the temptations of modern society as daringly as their New World counterparts. Europe did not experience Prohibition, nor the economic boom that led to the excesses of the "Roaring Twenties." Europe was recovering after the Great War and the aesthetic followed the lines of art deco, which shared similarities to American 20s style. But Europe's dolls, in a limited sense, with their bold make-up, coquettish eyes and a provocative expression, also tested the boundaries of the ideal image of a proper lady. Despite their differences, modern boudoir dolls across the globe allowed even the everyday girl to vicariously live the lifestyle of a free modern woman.

Antique French Boudoir Doll, Composition,
silk, cloth, circa 1920s

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Gwen Spicer is a textile conservator in private practice.  Spicer Art Conservation specializes in textile conservation, object conservation, and the conservation of works on paper.  Gwen's innovative treatment and mounting of flags and textiles is unrivaled.   To contact her, please visit her website.