The Stuff That Matters at Raven Row

Exhibition view, The Stuff That Matters. Courtesy the CSROT Historic Textile Collection at the Stichting Egress Foundation, Amsterdam. Photo: 6a architects

Historical textiles might seem a rather niche idea for an exhibition, but Raven Row gallery’s display of pieces from Seth Siegelaub’s vast collection brings together items that will be of interest to textile experts and fashion fans alike...

Siegelaub has been collecting textiles (and books on textiles) for the past 30 years, and the show contains pieces that have crossed continents and go back centuries. Among the oldest pieces here are fragments from an Egyptian tunic dating back to the 4th-5th century, and these ‘archaeological’ textiles are displayed alongside late medieval Asian and Islamic textiles and Pre-Columbian Peruvian textiles.

Fatimid textile fragment ('tiraz') with small bird and calligraphic pattern; Egypt, 10th–12th century

 Piece of silk with scrolling lotus and peonie pattern. China, Ming dynasty (1368–1644)

Exhibition view, The Stuff That Matters. Courtesy the CSROT Historic Textile Collection at the Stichting Egress Foundation, Amsterdam. Photo: Marcus J. Leith

The show has a local historical relevance to Raven Row, for in the 18th and early 19th centuries there was a thriving domestic silk industry in Spitalfields, when there was ban on the import of foreign woven silks. This came to an end in 1824, when the embargo was lifted. The show contains a wide selection of 18th century French and continental silks, the very fabrics that were banned during this period, as well as extravagant silk and velvet designs from the Italian Renaissance.

In addition to the clothing there is a delightful display of ceremonial headdresses from Africa, Asia and Oceania that incorporate a range of materials in elaborate designs. In the upstairs galleries, there are further unusual fabrics and materials on show, including a selection of clothing made of bark cloth and a number of Oceanian objects, such as a mask and hats, constructed out of tapa.

Exhibition view, The Stuff That Matters. Courtesy the CSROT Historic Textile Collection at the Stichting Egress Foundation, Amsterdam. Photo: Marcus J. Leith

Exhibition view, The Stuff That Matters. Courtesy the CSROT Historic Textile Collection at the Stichting Egress Foundation, Amsterdam. Photo: 6a architects

Exhibition view, The Stuff That Matters. Courtesy the CSROT Historic Textile Collection at the Stichting Egress Foundation, Amsterdam. Photo: Marcus J. Leith

This is a thorough, thoughtful exhibition, which needs to be visited for the items to come to life, for only then can the details of these beautiful objects be truly appreciated. Raven Row uses excellent display cases that allow visitors to pore over the items through glass, and also provides detailed information on the works, to help set them in their historical context. The resulting show is a textile treasure trove, a history of the world told through the mediums of linen, silk, taffeta and satin.

Piece of silk damask (back). Possibly Spanish or Italian, 17th century

Coptic tunic fragments. Egypt, est. 6th century

The Stuff That Matters is on show at Raven Row until May 6 (ravenrow.org). More information on Seth Siegelaub’s collection and the Centre for Social Research on Old Textiles (CSROT), which Siegelaub founded in 1986, can be found here.