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Color Portfolio, a leader in the color and trend forecasting business, selected blue as the color of the 21st century; Pantone Inc., a global leader in color matching systems chose blue-iris as the color of the year for 2008; and The Textile Museum in Washington D.C. recently hosted “BLUE,” an exhibit exploring the meaning of the color blue by examining textiles produced across time and place. Blue, therefore, is “in,” giving us the ideal opportunity to use it as the inaugural color in a series of exhibits exploring color in the Historic Clothing and Textiles collection at the University of Georgia.
Scholars argue that in most world languages, words used to describe blue appeared long after words for black, white, red, green, and yellow. Even with a late arrival, there is no shortage of words used to describe a color abundant in nature: sapphire, navy, royal, cerulean, cobalt, cyan, indigo, sky blue, baby blue, aqua blue, midnight blue, steel blue. Blue surrounds us in our “blue planet” —sky, water, blood?— and thus we use it to describe several emotions and experiences: feeling blue, true blue, blue ribbon, blue collar, singing the blues, out of the blue, and yes… that music: the blues.
This exhibit includes an eclectic selection of items from the Historic Clothing and Textiles Collection, ranging from late 19th century dress ensembles to a pair of early 2000s blue denim jeans. In the mix: indigo dyed yarns, blue fabrics from Cameroon, costume pieces from around the world, winter coats, elegant business suits made in Georgia and a range of prints, embellishments, and shades… all part of The Blues.
The Historic Clothing and Textile Collection at the University of Georgia is a study collection of over 1,500 garments, accessories, and textiles that date from the 1800s to the 1990s. It includes women's, men's, and children's clothing, hats, shoes, and jewelry as well as quilts and coverlets from the 19th century. The collection is under the stewardship of the Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Interiors, in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences and is housed in Dawson Hall at the UGA campus in Athens, Georgia.
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