Fibers of Being explores the layered meanings of textiles translocated from Asia to the United States as they cross geographical, cultural, and temporal boundaries. Clothing and accessories convey the personal identities, fashion sense, and social status of their original wearers and transmit the tastes of people who selected them from shops in cities around the world. Because many textiles are portable and adaptable, American tourists and missionaries purchased them as souvenirs to serve as tangible objects around which to center stories of travel with friends back home.

Works in the exhibition include a silk embroidered woman’s coat, collar, paired apron, and rank badge from China; remnants of Buddhist priests’ robes and a woman’s coat known as an uchikake from Japan; cotton batik sarongs and headwraps from Java; painted textiles created in Bali that feature characters from the Hindu epic Ramayana; a silk and gauze Chinese dragon robe; and a Hmong American quilted applique story cloth.

Several textiles in the show are new discoveries from storage while others have remained unseen since their initial acquisition by the museum in 1930s–1980s. New research reidentifies and contextualizes these objects while highlighting the roles of women as makers and wearers. Many works include evidence of use through physical traces, such as fraying, loose threads, and incomplete repairs. By introducing visitors to these previously invisible works, this show aims to encourage support for their conservation and preservation.

This exhibition and related events were made possible by the Sursa Art Exhibitions and Visiting Performers Program and the Friends of the David Owsley Museum of Art.

Fibers of Being was on display from September 28 - December 21, 2023