Mat (mosen) for the tea ceremony (detail), 19th century. Mongolia or China for the Japanese market Wool; felted, resist dyeing (tie-dye).
To Dye For: A World Saturated in Color
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To Dye For features over 50 textiles and costumes from the Fine Arts Museums’ comprehensive collection of textiles from Africa, Asia, and the Americas. A truly cross-cultural presentation, the exhibition showcases objects from diverse cultures and historical periods, including a tie-dyed mantle from the Wari-Nasca culture of pre-Hispanic Peru (500 – 900 A.D.), a paste-resist Mongolian felt rug from the 15th – 17th century and a group of stitch-resist dyed 20th-century kerchiefs from the Dida people of the Ivory Coast. These historical pieces are contrasted with artworks from contemporary Bay Area artists. The exhibition highlights several recent acquisitions, including important gifts such as a pair of ikat-woven, early-20th-century women’s skirts from the Iban people of Sarawak, Malaysia and two exquisite hand-painted and mordant-dyed Indian trade cloths used as heirloom cloths by the Toraja peoples of Sulawesi, Indonesia.
Sponsors
To Dye For: A World Saturated in Color is organized by the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and supported by Olive and Bruce Baganz, Dr. Donald Breyer, Mary F. Connors, Dr. Guido Goldman, Harry and Diane Greenberg, Thomas Murray, Francesca Passalacqua and Don Ed Hardy, S. Peter Poullada and Nancy Sheppard, San Francisco Tribal, and Fifi White. Additional support provided by Britex Fabrics, Judith and Reed Content, Barbara and Dolph Shapiro, and Peter and Beverly Sinton.
