From L to R, Clockwise: Tracy Reese’s Hope for Flowers line, sustainably produced in Detroit, Hope for Flowers via Vogue.com; “Press Operators, GM Fisher Body Trim Plant, Fort Street, Detroit Michigan,” 1982, Russ Marshall, American; gelatin silver print, via DIA.org; “Pink Bows” – Velvet empire-style with satin bow with beaded trim of silvered glass seed beads, bodice embellished with iridescent piette sequins worn by the Supremes, c. 1966, MaryWilson.com; Eleanor and Edsel Ford enjoy a baseball game on July 13, 1934, Detroit News File Photo.
What would it be like if Detroit had a center for the study and exhibition of dress history?
This is a question that has been rolling around in my mind for a while. As a dress historian and native Michigander, it’s heartbreaking to see this incredibly essential area of collecting not being championed within the leading institutions of our state and cultural center of Detroit, despite the fact that we know fashion more than stands up to the cultural weight of history and the artistry of favored mediums such as painting and sculpture while bringing in record breaking ticket sales.
In recent years, Detroit has become home to a burgeoning fashion and style scene, lead by the likes of Tracy Reece, Detroit is the New Black, Shinola, Pingree, and Carhartt, not to mention manufacturing, support, and production training centers like the Industrial Sewing and Innovation Center, Detroit Garment Group, and Detroit Sewn, among others.
This promising future is backed up by millenias of diverse and significant modes of dress from the fine craftsmanship and deeply rooted identities of the region’s First Peoples, to the furs and influence of French traders, rich folk garments from successive waves of European immigration, commerically significant wardrobes of automobile industry leaders that shaped the visual narrative of new industrial wealth, humble but dignified factory worker’s coveralls, UAW jackets, the stylistic excellence of motown, and of course, the grit and glam of street style you can only find in Detroit.
In light of all this (the tip of the iceberg), how can we not recognize it’s significance and value to our community? Such a collection would be an invaluable tool for local students of design and fashion, an relatable yet powerful means of illustrating the stories, economies, class structures, and personalities of the area, a benchmark of the city’s revitalization—solidifying our identity as not only exporters of manufactured goods, but also undiluted style.
Would it benefit from being an area of collecting within an established institution such as the Detroit Historical Society, the Wright Museum of African American History, or the Detroit Institute of Arts? Even if situated in a satellite location, the existing infrastructure, support, as well as the concentration of funding and resources could prove mutually invaluable.
Would the challenges of establishing an all new organization, space, and funding streams outweigh the freedom to be found in establishing a new venture? The temptation of creating something new that could exist outside the strictures of the archetypal Euro-centric museum template is certainly exciting. The 21st century is certainly in need of community cultural centers that whose working structure and public face better reflect the world we live in with opportunities to craft spaces, exhibits, and events around progressive museum theory that redirects them from, in the words of museum thought leader Stephen Weil,” being about something to being for somebody.”
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