Length of "Pussy Willow", Mallinson trade name for a fine, soft, radium-like, plain weave fabric (mfr #1900). Printed with an allover pattern (mfr #2763), "Old Sampler--Paul Revere," reproducing, in a cross-stitch effect, the alphabets, numerals, and embroidery patterns stitched on samplers, as well as incidents from the Longfellow poem, "Paul Revere's Ride", such as hanging lanterns in the church tower, and scenes of colonial life such as ploughing fields. Text excerpts from the poem also appear in the design. Light brown ground. Selvage width, selvage inscription. Judging from drawings by free-lance textile designer Walter Mitschke in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts - Boston, Mitschke designed this print and several others in the Early American series.
Mallinson's 1929 "Early American" series of printed dress silks was based on historical events and figures that were perceived at the time to consitute a shared American story. It was the last of the company's line of designs based on American themes in which each design was printed in at least seven colors, in several colorways, on three or four different ground cloths. The stock market crash and economic depression that followed made the investment in this kind of design unprofitable.
In late 1926 American silk manufacturer H.R. Mallinson & Co. introduced a bold new line of printed silks, twelve landscape designs, each available in from eight to twelve colorways (color combinations) on three different ground fabrics. The designs celebrated America's national parks - then only a decade old. The designs represented all the usual styles necesssary for making clothing: allover prints, horizontal stripes, checks, a border design. This sheer plain weave fabric, Mallinson's Indestructible chiffon voile, is printed with the design depicting Mammoth Hot Springs, at Yellowstone National Park. Selvage width; selvage inscription. Judging from drawings by free-lance textile designer Walter Mitschke in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts - Boston, Mitschke designed this print and a few others in the National Parks series.
"Minerva" is one of the second series of La Victoire silks, produced by H.R. Mallinson & Co. in conjunction with the Peace Conference that followed the signing of the Armistice that ended the fighting in World War I. The Roman goddess of both war and wisdom, Minerva’s presence in this design suggests that the Mallinson company supported a gentler peace than would eventually be ratified by the Treaty of Versailles. The choice of Minerva, and not the Greek goddess Athena, who had similar attributes, may be due to Minerva’s association with weaving—a reminder of the medium for this message. This design of repeated roundels was printed in 4 colors on a blue ground of Mallinson’s popular “Pussy Willow” silk.
A length of a jacquard-patterned and over-printed Mallinson trademark sport silk, "Khaki Kool". A rough surface jacquard figured crepe fabric woven with warp of tussah silk and weft of tussah loosely twisted with a silk crepe yarn. Printed with allover design depicting Paradise Valley, Mount Rainier National Park, Washington. In late 1926 American silk manufacturer H.R. Mallinson & Co introduced a bold new line of printed silks, twelve landscape designs, each available in from eight to twelve colorways (color combinations) on three different ground fabrics. The designs celebrated America's national parks - then only a decade old. The designs represented all the usual styles necesssary for making clothing: allover prints, horizontal stripes, checks, a border design. This design depicts snow-capped peaks within a reserve framed by pine trees and flowers. Selvage width; selvage inscription. Judging from drawings by free-lance textile designer Walter Mitschke in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts - Boston, Mitschke designed this print and a few others in the National Park series.
A "Martine" silk by the Duplan Silk Company of Hazleton, PA. This design titled "Bishop", on quality "Fleur de Jeunesse" a fine soft taffeta. Printed design of scattered stylized scrolls and flowers in golden brown, bright pink, and light green on an off white ground. This example was cylinder printed. Duplan's publicity touts this series of silk dress fabrics as "Woven, printed, and finished in the US, sold and delivered in Paris and London. Designs by the Martine School of Decorative Art, Paris, France. Directed, owned, and personally supervised by Mr. Paul Poiret, who is universally acknowledged as the greatest creator of women's fashions of the present century." In the press these were called "Futurist Flowers, and there supposedly 8 designs in total that Duplan licensed from Poiret. NMAH Textiles department holds six samples, of four designs, two of the designs in two colorways on two different ground cloths.
A "Martine" silk by the Duplan Silk Company of Hazleton, PA. This design titled "Pekin", on charmeuse, a lightweight satin weave silk. Printed design ofwide and narrow irregular stripes in yellow, chartreuse green, blue, brown, and black. This example was cylinder printed. Duplan's publicity touts this series of silk dress fabrics as "Woven, printed, and finished in the US, sold and delivered in Paris and London. Designs by the Martine School of Decorative Art, Paris, France. Directed, owned, and personally supervised by Mr. Paul Poiret, who is universally acknowledged as the greatest creator of women's fashions of the present century." In the press these were called "Futurist Flowers", and there were supposedly 8 designs in total that Duplan licensed from Poiret. The NMAH Textiles collection holds six samples, four designs, two designs in two colorways on two different ground cloths.
The first H.R. Mallinson & Co. La Victoire series, designed just before the Armistice to end World War I in Fall, 1918, comprised 6 designs. The first series of La Victoire prints celebrated different aspects of the French military forces. The "Scouts" design is "a clever stripe design in which the French poilu is featured on a scouting expedition." (description taken from a Mallinson marketing booklet). Infantry scouts often operated alone, ahead of their units, trying to find out the size and placement of the opposing forces. In this striped design, the seated and standing figures of the scouts appear to melt into the trees. The design is machine-printed on a lightweight semi-sheer silk crepe that the Mallinson firm trademarked as "Indestructible Crepe."
A "Martine" silk by the Duplan Silk Company of Hazleton, PA. This design titled "Bishop", on quality "Ruisselet" a warp-faced weave with much thicker weft yarns than warp yarns, having a crinkled texture. Printed design of scattered stylized scrolls and flowers on a dark blue ground. This example was cylinder printed. Duplan's publicity touts this series of silk dress fabrics as"Woven, printed, and finished in the US, sold and delivered in Paris and London. Designs by the Martine School of Decorative Art, Paris, France. Directed, owned, and personally supervised by Mr. Paul Poiret, who is universally acknowledged as the greatest creator of women's fashions of the present century." In the press these were called "Futurist Flowers", and there were supposedly 8 designs in total that Duplan licensed from Poiret. The NMAH Textiles collection holds six samples, four designs, two designs in two colorways on two different ground cloths.
A "Martine" silk by the Duplan Silk Company of Hazleton, PA. This design titled "Pekin", on quality "Crepe Chinois", a lightweight plain weave silk with slubbed weft yarns like a shantung. Printed design of wide and narrow irregular stripes in brown, blue, olive green, and orange. This example was cylinder printed. Duplan's publicity touts this series of silk dress fabrics as "Woven, printed, and finished in the US, sold and delivered in Paris and London. Designs by the Martine School of Decorative Art, Paris, France. Directed, owned, and personally supervised by Mr. Paul Poiret, who is universally acknowledged as the greatest creator of women's fashions of the present century." In the press these were called "Futurist Flowers", and there were supposedly 8 designs in total that Duplan licensed from Poiret. The NMAH Textiles collection holds six samples, four designs, two designs in two colorways on two different ground cloths.
"Chasseurs" is a design from the first H.R. Mallinson La Victoire series, designed just before the Armistice to end World War I was signed in Fall, 1918. This example was printed on Mallinson's trademarked "Indestructible Crepe." The term “Chasseurs à cheval” designated elite units of the French cavalry – “chasseurs” meaning hunters, “à cheval,” on horseback. During World War I, dangerous reconnaissance missions were often given to the Chasseurs. The wide stripe design depicts standing figures and figures on horseback (the elite reconnaissance units of the French army) who appear poised for action among trees and shrubs, with a stream winding through. See TE*T04082 for the same design on a different ground cloth (Mallinson's Pussy Willow) and in a different colorway (5 colors on a dark blue ground).
A length of jacquard-patterned, over-printed Khaki Kool (H.R. Mallinson & Co. trade name). A rough surface jacquard figured crepe fabric woven with warp of tussah silk and weft of tussah loosely twisted with a silk crepe yarn. Printed with allover design depicting Niagara Falls in cool colors on a white ground. In late 1926 American silk manufacturer H.R. Mallinson & Co. introduced a bold new line of printed silks, twelve landscape designs, each available in from eight to twelve colorways (color combinations) on three different ground fabrics. The designs celebrated America's national parks - then only a decade old. The designs represented all the usual styles necesssary for making clothing: allover prints, horizontal stripes, checks, a border design, etc. The waterfalls, rainbows, and swirling waters of Niagara Falls are framed in a reserve of flowers and foliage.
This design, titled "Dedicated to the Women of the Allied Nations," is from the second La Victoire series by H.R. Mallinson & Co., Inc., produced in conjunction with the Peace Conference after the Armistice that ended the fighting in World War in was signed. Machine-printed on Mallinson's trademark "Pussy Willow" silk, one of the firm's most enduring staple qualities, the design depicts stylized female figures in 'national' dress, including a "Liberty" figure to depict American women. Many of the designers and marketing staff in the Mallinson firm, as well as most of the mill-workers, were female. Perhaps this fact encouraged the company to recognize in silk the contributions to victory made by the women who supported the war effort both at home and in the theater of war, as volunteers and in professional capacities.
The devastation of war and the continuous drain of men from the farms to the armed forces affected France’s ability to feed its civilians and it soldiers. This design, from the first La Victoire series of dress silks created by H.R. Mallinson and Co. just before the Armistice that ended the fighting in World War I was signed in Fall 1918, celebrates detachments of troops assigned to assist with the harvest near the end of war. The firm’s marketing brochure describes the design as, "There's the wheat bound in sheaves, the various fruits of the harvest and the poilus hard at work gathering them for a harvest of Victory and Peace in this unusual design." There are two identical lengths in the collection, each printed on the Mallinson "Khaki Kool" fabrication in 5 colors on a dark blue ground. “Khaki Kool” was created by the Mallinson firm as a "Sport silk" early in the war, to give customers a silk alternative to scarce cotton and wool fabrics for sports and casual wear.
Length of printed "Indestructible Chiffon Voile" (Mallinson trade name). A sheer plain weave, all silk fabric (mfr #1800). Printed with an allover pattern (mfr #2774), titled "Ponce de Leon--Jamestown," one of the Mallinson 1929 "Early American" Series. This design illustrates scenes related to the colonizing of Florida and Virginia: Ponce de Leon in Florida; Capt. John Smith & Pocahontas; Baptism of Virginia Dare; and landing of young women at Jamestown ,VA. Beige ground with print in shades of green, orange, red, brown, with white reserve.Selvage width; selvage inscription.
Mallinson's 1929 "Early American" series of printed dress silks was based on historical events and figures that were perceived at the time to consitute a shared American story. It was the last of the company's line of designs based on American themes in which each design was printed in at least seven colors, in several colorways, on three or four different ground cloths. The stock market crash and economic depression that followed made the investment in this kind of design unprofitable.
The peace treaty negotiations between Germany and the Allied powers exposed discord among the Allies. US President Wilson took a less punitive stance than the governments of Britain and France. With its symbolic doves and olive branches, this design from the second series of La Victoire printed dress silks by H.R. Mallinson & Co., Inc. suggests a sympathy with Wilson’s war aims. The design was machine-printed on Mallinson's semi-sheer trademarked "Indestructible Crepe." A very thin pure dye crepe, similar to "Georgette". with dove of peace and olive branch design in blue and white on a dark ground.
Length of printed "Pussy Willow" (Mallinson trade name) silk. - A fine soft, radium-like plain weave fabric (mfr #1900). Printed with an all over pattern (mfr #2775) titled "Memories of the Alamo." The design features images of The Alamo, Bluebonnets - the state flower of Texas, and in the background in lighter tones, a "Vision of the defenders of the Alamo" (Travis, Bowie, and Crockett) and Sam Houston on horseback. Six colors and black on a white ground. One of the Mallinson 1929 Early American Series of printed dress silks. Selvage width; selvage inscription.
Mallinson's 1929 "Early American" series of printed dress silks was based on historical events and figures that were perceived at the time to consitute a shared American story. It was the last of the company's line of designs based on American themes in which each design was printed in at least seven colors, in several colorways, on three or four different ground cloths. The stock market crash and economic depression that followed made the investment in this kind of design unprofitable.
"Marines & Camouflage" is the title of this design, from the first La Victoire series designed by H.R. Mallinson & Co. just before the Armistice that ended the fighting in World War I was signed, in November 1918. The firm’s marketing brochure stated,"That there is much real art in camouflaging is proven in this design in which you see the Marines and then you don't." Camouflage became a military necessity during World War I. Long range artillery and aerial observation and bombardment wreaked havoc within the static trenches, as did submarine warfare at sea. The armed forces required new ways to hide from enemy observation and attack, and recruited artists and scientists to assist with camouflage efforts. The importance of their efforts is recognized by this design, printed in five colors on a tan ground, on “Pussy Willow” silk, one of Mallinson's most enduring fabrications.
A length of jacquard-patterned, over-printed "Khaki Kool" trademark Mallinson sport silk. A rough surface jacquard figured crepe fabric woven with warp of tussah silk and weft of tussah loosely twisted with a silk crepe yarn. Allover printed design, Grand Canyon of the Colorado River, Arizona on a pale green ground. In late 1926 American silk manufacturer H.R. Mallinson introduced a bold new line of printed silks, twelve landscape designs, each available in from eight to twelve colorways (color combinations) on three different ground fabrics. The designs celebrated America's national parks - then only a decade old. The designs represented all the usual styles necesssary for making clothing: allover prints, horizontal stripes, checks, a border design, etc. This directional allover design depicts the canyons and meandering river of the Grand Canyon park. There was a second Grand Canyon design, a border design, also donated by the company. Selvage width; selvage inscription.
Length of printed "Indestructible Chiffon Voile" (Mallinson trade name), a sheer, plain weave, all silk fabric. Printed with all over pattern "Trail of the Forty-Niners", one of the Mallinson 1929 "Early American Series." This design depicts panning gold on the Feather River, bench mining, placer mining, San Francisco and the bay, miners going to the gold fields, mountains and Lake Tahoe. Colorway: light greens, grays, peach, brown, black. Selvage width; selvage insciption.
Mallinson's 1929 "Early American" series of printed dress silks was based on historical events and figures that were perceived at the time to consitute a shared American story. It was the last of the company's line of designs based on American themes in which each design was printed in at least seven colors, in several colorways, on three or four different ground cloths. The stock market crash and economic depression that followed made the investment in this kind of design unprofitable.
French General Ferdinand Foch was named Supreme Commander of all the Allied forces in France in March 1918, and was named Marshal of France in July 1918. He accepted the German surrender in November of that year. This design, dedicated to this French war hero, is from the first La Victoire series, produced by H.R. Mallinson & Co, just before the armistice that ended the fighting in World War I. The striped design in gold on a dark blue ground, on semi-sheer "Indestructible Crepe" was inspired by the military insignia of four rows of oak leaves and seven stars that only Foch was entitled to wear, and which ornamented his uniform cap.