Who wore this Dior?

Published by Melanie Pitkin 1 Comment Tags: , , , .

Dior2Photography © Powerhouse Museum, all rights reserved.

Haute Couture (or “High Fashion”), as the name suggests, is not for just anyone. It is the pinnacle of fashion, made specifically to the exact dimensions of the wearer, in high quality, luxurious fabrics, virtually all by hand (the seams are machine sewn), and a single garment can take up to 4 months to make. But, when it comes to Haute Couture, you’re not just buying a piece of clothing; you’re buying a piece of art!

So who wore this Dior?

It is a three piece suit of blue wool serge designed by Christian Dior for the Spring 1950 ‘Vertical Line’ collection. It features a bodice with long pencil skirt and swing back jacket. The Museum purchased the outfit from a vendor in London in 1994, who informs us that it was owned by a female member of the Firestone family (founders of the Firestone tyre company) of Detroit, USA.

Of the women in this family, Mrs Elizabeth Parke Firestone is the most thought-of for her expensive taste and fashion sense. Elizabeth (1897-1990) was married to Harvey S. Firestone Jr, son of the founder of the Firestone Tyre and Rubber Company. Her daughter, Martha Firestone, married William Clay Ford Snr, grandson of Henry Ford.

elizfirestoneMrs Elizabeth Parke Firestone, Image courtesy of The Henry Ford Research Center

Between 1915 and 1975, Elizabeth acquired an impressive wardrobe of Haute Couture garments, many of which are now in the collection of the Benson Ford Research Center in Dearborn, Michigan, and gained a reputation for being one of America’s “best dressed women”. Dior and Balenciaga were her preferred designers and amongst the collection is a 1952 Christian Dior red silk faille dress with matching shoes, a sketch for a gown sent for approval in 1956 (Elizabeth often purchased garments without ever having tried them on!) and a stunning 1953 Balenciaga linen print dress.

Some research with the Benson Ford Research Center, however, was unfortunately unable to confirm if Elizabeth was, in fact, the owner of this suit. Their collection of Firestone Family Papers includes several folders of correspondence with Christian Dior, but alas, without any reference to this 1950 piece. However, not all of Elizabeth’s couture collection went to the Center. Some were also sold at auction and some were donated to colleges in Ohio.

europe54Image courtesy of The Henry Ford Research Center

In the meantime, if anyone can shed light on the Firestone family and this particular Dior suit, please let us know.

Next week, I will be taking you inside the suit – looking at the intimate details normally obscured to the eye – and the workmanship involved in making a couture suit, like this, sit absolutely perfectly on the wearer!

Old things in new ways…

Published by Rebecca Evans 4 Comments Tags: , , , , .
Doulton Vase (2000/138/1)

Doulton Vase (2000/138/1)

Looking at old things in new ways is one of the Museum’s best talents.

Recently while Conservation Photographer, Kate Pollard and I were photographing this beautiful Doulton vase from 1882 we quickly realised that it had a fantastic painting of Farm Cove and the Garden Palace from the same period. When looking at the vase though you can only really see a section of the painting at a time.

If we could see the whole image, all at the same time, it would make so much more sense, and I was positive that you would be able to see more of the details of the painting.

So our bright photographer, Kate pulled out one of her home made contraptions that she had previously used at the State Library that would enable her to take lots of shots of the vase as it turned slowly around at exactly the same interval each time. The result was seventy odd photographs of the vase which Kate was then able to put onto Photoshop to merge and stretch the images so that they looked like one long panorama.

Impressed with Kate’s work I was able to look at the painted image in a completely new light, we realised that the turrets of a building were not in fact Government House but Fort Denison and could see that the people were walking along the Mrs Macquarie Road side of Farm Cove.

Doulton Vase (2000/138/1)

Doulton Vase (2000/138/1)


Doulton Vase Panorama (2000/138/1)

Doulton Vase Panorama (2000/138/1)

Context is everything when looking at historical objects and by digitally manipulating the painted image on this vase into a panorama we can see so much more, we see how everything fits within the surroundings.

We are hoping to do more of these manipulations in the future, so keep posted and if you have any suggestions of objects from our collection that would benefit from this type of manipulation, just let us know.

Rebecca Evans, Assistant Registrar

Photography by Kate Pollard, © Powerhouse Museum, all rights reserved

First Powered Flight in Australia- Episode 1

Published by Ian Debenham 0 Comments Tags: , , .

George Augustine Taylor in flight

George and Florence Taylor, the first untethered heavier-than-air flights

On December 5, 1909 George Augustine Taylor became the first man in Australia to fly an untethered heavier-than-air craft. On this day he made several flights on Narrabeen beach, north of Sydney, with the longest glide reported as 110 yards (100.6 metres). George’s wife, Florence, also had a fly in the Voisin-inspired biplane glider with its Hargrave box-kite tail, although the stout gentlemen attending the glider held on to the tethers attached to the wing tips lest she fell into the ocean. Even with this attachment, her flight was recorded as 90 yards (82.3 metres) in length and she could rightly claim to be the first woman to pilot a heavier-than-air craft in Australia.

About a hundred people came to watch the aerial antics of the small group of people, friends and associates of George and Florence Taylor, as they took their turn to fly along the beach.

GTaylorPortraitImage courtesy of ADB Online

George was born in August, 1872 at his parent’s home and fruit shop in King Street, Sydney. He was the second of nine children born to George and Annie Maria Taylor. George Augustine’s younger brother, Vincent Patrick, achieved international fame as “Captain Penfold“, a balloonist. George achieved local fame in the building trade and edited a magazine called “Building”, the journal of the Master Builders Association. Taylor was also an artist, writer, publisher and inventor.

At an early age, he developed an interest in aeronautics; flying kites in the domain and eagerly following the work of Lawrence Hargrave, the pioneer of aeronautics in Australia. At the age of 10, he wrote an essay at school titled “The future of the flying machine in Australia’s history”. Later, George progressed to flying model aeroplanes powered by rubber bands. From experiments with these models he learned the basics of aeronautics.

Voisin1Model of Voisin type glider flown at Narrabeen by George Augustine Taylor, December 5, 1909, Photography © Powerhouse Museum, all rights reserved.

In April 1909, George formed The Aerial League of Australia and later that year opened the first aeroplane factory in Australia at Surry Hills in Sydney. As well as construction of Hargrave box-kites, Cody war kites and the Voisin-type glider that was used for the first untethered flights, Taylor was also having his powered aeroplane constructed there.

Stay tuned for the next episode on Colin Defries and the first powered flight in Australia!

First Powered Flight in Australia- Intro

Published by Ian Debenham 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

defries1Colin Defries with his Wright Model A ‘The Stella’ at Victoria Park Racecourse, Image courtesy of John Scott

On December 9th this year the Museum will celebrate the centenary of the first powered flight in Australia through a joint meeting with the Royal Aeronautical Society and Aviation Historical Society of NSW and a small foyer showcase display. I understand that, in Victoria, plans are already underway to celebrate the same centenary on March 18th next year. Maybe the South Australians have plans for a similar celebration, the day before, on March 17th? But how can three States claim a national first? It’s a long story but nevertheless an interesting one which includes, of all people, the renowned escapologist and showman, Harry Houdini. If I’ve whetted your interest then this story of claim and counter claim will be unravelled for you over the next few weeks. I did mention that it is a long story!

Happy Friday the 13th!

Published by Erika Dicker 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

jbo c1 013
Unlucky Friday the 13th is apparently the most popular superstition in the world. I, for one, do not have supersititious beliefs, I open umbrellas inside, I like black cats, and I confidently walk under ladders. If you do fear Friday the 13th you have a paraskevidekatriaphobia, and I suggest you cease reading this post immediately.

I dedicate this post to all our readers, may you have an unremarkable Friday the 13th! Here are some superstitious things from our collection:

00206773Toy cat from the Jandaschewsky collection

Superstition: If a black cat walks towards you it brings good luck, if it walks away from you it takes your luck away.

00572622 NSW ambulance service ambulance.

Superstition: Seeing an ambulance is bad luck unless you pinch your nose or hold your breathe until you see a black or brown dog.

00526605 Anatomical model of the human ear.

Superstition: If your right ear itches someone is speaking well of you, if your left ear itches someone is speaking ill of you.

00x07425 Tailor’s scissors

Superstition: If you drop a pair of scissors it means your lover is being unfaithful to you.

2001.125.1-5 Pencil from the Collard and Collard Collection

(This one is dedicated to all those students sitting their HSC exams at the moment)
Superstition: Use the same pencil to take a test that you used for studying as the pencil remembers the answers!

Do you have any little quirks when Friday the 13th comes around? Avoid cracks in the pavement? Throw salt over your shoulder? I want to hear some whacky ones!

Photography Powerhouse Museum © all rights reserved

On loan from the Smithsonian

Published by Kerrie Dougherty 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , .

00z27124 Photography by Marinco Kojdanovski, © Powerhouse Museum, all rights reserved.

Curators at the Powerhouse not only research information about the artefacts in our own collection, from time to time we assist external colleagues with their object research as well. Satellite propulsion engineer Alan Lawrie, author of histories of the Saturn V and Saturn I rockets, contacted the museum seeking information about the F-1 rocket motor in the Space exhibition. Together with former employees of the Rocketdyne company, which manufactured the F-1, Alan has been researching the location and identification of all the surviving F-1 rocket engines.

The most powerful single chamber liquid fuel rocket engine so far put into service, five F-1 motors were used in the first stage of the Saturn V rocket that launched the Apollo missions to the Moon. The only example on public display outside the United States, the museum’s F-1 is on long term loan from the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum.

Unfortunately, the Smithsonian’s records had very little information about the history of this rocket motor and had incorrectly recorded its serial number, making it difficult for Alan to trace the story of this particular engine. Despite the difficulty of accessing the suspended engine, we were able to arrange for photos of the motor’s makers plate, which allowed for the correct identification of its serial number. This enabled a search of the surviving Rocketdyne records to establish the engine’s history.

We now know that the F-1 rocket motor in the Space exhibition was the 25th of 114 research and development F-1 engines produced by Rocketdyne and that it was probably manufactured in 1961. It was test fired 35 times.

The Berlin Wall- 20 years on

Published by Erika Dicker 1 Comment

Berlin wall Photography Powerhouse Museum © all rights reserved

“This ninth of November is a historic day.” East Germany “has announced that, starting immediately, its borders are open to everyone.”

Today marks 20 years that have passed since the fall of the Berlin Wall, the ‘Iron Curtain’ separating East and West Berlin, Germany.

This is an actual piece of the wall, collected in Germany by our very own curator Peter Cox whilst on holiday in the 1990s.

As many of you know, Peter is busy getting ready to open our 80s exhibition in a few weeks, and this piece of the wall will be one of the more serious objects to sit amongst the hypercolour t-shirts, cabbage patch dolls, and fluoro leg warmers!

Fashions on the Court

Published by Melanie Pitkin 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

oncourtPowerhouse Museum © all rights reserved

Nowadays, watching tennis is as much of a sport as playing it! While there is the game itself, the on court fashion is equally a crowd pleaser. During the Hopman Cup in Perth earlier this year, tennis legend Margaret Court observed that players’ outfits make them “look like they should be on the beach”. She argued that today’s fashion has gone overboard – it is clingy, shows everything and puts the spectators focus on the player’s body rather than on their game. While some may argue that this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it does highlight the drastic shift in attitudes towards tennis and tennis fashions.

In the last 135 years since women first started playing tennis, we have gone from head to toe coverings to barely there, and both extremes can be seen in the Museum’s collection.

tenniscostumePowerhouse Museum © all rights reserved

This late 19th century example from England comprises a long sleeved tunic jacket and ankle length skirt made from tussore silk. It is more like a fanciful costume than sporting attire and would have been worn with black stockings, laced shoes with a heel, hat and gloves. Fitted on the skirt of this particular example are a number of hooks and eyelets which allowed the wearer to fold up the bottom of the skirt while playing. Some other dresses from this time were even fitted with pockets or an apron for holding the balls, in readiness for serving, or the racquet while socialising off the court. Tennis dresses for women at this time were an indication of a ladies charm and elegance, a far cry from what they stand for today!

TEN-US OPEN-WILLIAMS SERVEImage courtesy of blackperspective.net

Our 21st century example is not really a dress, as such, but a ‘catsuit’! It was designed and made by Puma in 2002 and a similar one to this was worn by Serena Williams (see above) at the US Open in the same year (she beat her own sister in it to win the final!). It is a sleeveless one-piece suit with built in shorts, made of black polyester and a zip front. In other words, there isn’t much material and it’s worn like a second skin. It’s not elegant, but nor was it ever designed to be this way. Instead, it speaks business, strength and confidence and, for Serena Williams, an outfit like this can look very threatening to the opposition, showing off her muscular frame, which is in itself, an excellent strategy for gaining the psychological upper hand in a match.

serenaPowerhouse Museum © all rights reserved

Whether or not the ‘catsuit’ is a tennis fashion faux-pas, however, I am undecided. I think I’ve seen a lot worse on the tennis court – white socks with black sneakers, all over hair beads, the back-to-front cap, black leather knee high boots, one long sleeve and one short sleeve and wearing the same colour top or dress as the surface you’re playing on!

What do you think? Fashion faux-pas or fashion revolution? And, do you think we’ll ever see a revival of the ankle length skirt again!?

In case you’re baffled about which tennis player goes with each fashion faux-pas, here are the answers (L-R): Andre Agassi/Pete Sampras/Lleyton Hewitt, Venus Williams, Lleyton Hewitt, Serena Williams, Martina Hingis, Rafael Nadal.

Saddling up with Gucci

Published by Lynne McNairn 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

86-558-1Powerhouse Museum © all rights reserved

Horse racing and fashion have always been closely associated and with Melbourne Cup upon us I had a look for “Horse Racing Fashion” in our databaase. One item is this bright floral dress made by Gucci around 1970. Gucci had a strong association with horses, starting out as he did with a small family owned saddlery shop.

Guccio Gucci (1881-1953), began his career in 1920 when he opened a saddlery business in Florence, Italy. Using equestrian motifs as an inspiration, Guccio established the House of Gucci and opened his first fashion boutique in 1921. During his lifetime, Gucci introduced many of the designs for which the company has become known, such as the bamboo handle handbag and the suede moccasin with a metal bit. After his death in 1953, Gucci’s sons continued to expand the company overseas, using their father’s initials to establish the famous GG logo. Although now under the direction of new designers, The House of Gucci remains the best selling Italian brand, and certainly one of the most easily recognisable brands in the world.

You can really see the equestrian influence in the buttons which show not only the horse shoe but an accurate representation of a horse’s foot as well.

Horse hoof button

Horse hoof button

Powerhouse Museum © all rights reserved

Lynne McNairn
Registrar

Movember

Published by Erika Dicker 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

 95_28_53 April Photography Powerhouse Museum © all rights reserved

Yes, it’s that time of year again…Movember! This annual charity event is responsible for handlebar and Fu Manchu moustaches around Australia, and indeed the world, each November. Originating in Melbourne in 2003, Movember aims to promote awareness and raises much-needed funds for men’s health issues, with a focus on prostate cancer and depression.

The first rule of Movember is to obviously begin the month with a clean-shaven face. One of the more interesting A-category objects in our collection comprises two folding cut-throat razors owned by John Fletcher Hargrave, father of aviation pioneer Lawrence Hargrave.
00537397Photography Powerhouse Museum © all rights reserved

The blades are made from a section of recycled iron salvaged from one of the piles of old London Bridge, reputedly driven into the bed of the River Thames by King William Rufus in 1100. The use of iron shoes to manufacture items such as razor blades, tools and surgical instruments was quite common after the old London Bridge was demolished in 1830.

Given to J.F. Hargrave by his father at sixteen years of age, the razors are accompanied by a handmade silk bag and an envelope on which the provenance of the blades is handwritten.

The blades are significant due to their association with Lawrence Hargrave. The blades were passed to him upon his father’s death in 1885 and were kept in the family until they were kindly donated to the Powerhouse Museum by Mrs Helen Gray, Lawrence’s eldest daughter, in 1963.

So, at the end of the month when the Man of Movember has been crowned and the Tom Selleck wannabes go home, I’m sure a set like this will come in handy.

Kate Scott
Registrar