Mid-century modern fabrics feel contemporary

As we all know, titles can be deceiving, and this one will throw you for a loop. While the current Mid-Twentieth Century English fabric design show at the Textile Museum is in fact just that, it's also a good bit wide of the target if you think you're getting an all encompassing group show retrospective. With roughly three-fourths of the exhibition dedicated to the work of Lucienne Day it's almost a solo show... but not quite.

We also have a few furniture pieces to deal with here by Day's husband, Robin Day. Which leads us to a somewhat unfair and diminishing comparison to the American design star couple of Charles and Ray Eames. Which is to say that few, if any, design couples have ever become international household words the way the Eames have. More to the point, the Day's will probably be complete unknowns to even hard core design fans on this side of the Atlantic.

In fact, all four designers here are likely to be new names to our ears. And that is one of the strongest attractions to this show. No matter how much you know about Mid-Century design, you're likely to see new material here.... and isn't that really a big part of why we go to museum shows in the first place?

So, while the format is a tad lopsided, and notions of objective all-encompassing scope seriously in question.... it's still an excellent show, and certainly well worth seeing.

A little context adds a great deal to the significance of what we're viewing here. The free flow of consumable goods in the 1950's hadn't been seen since the late 20's. The war torn and badly depleted state of the world in general, compounded by the post World War II nest building, lead to an almost explosive growth in consumption. People could finally both get goods, and pay for them. 

An air of exuberance and optimism marked the period. The Atomic Age brought with it promises of atomic powered transportation, jet packs, and the specter of imminent space travel. On the other hand, it also brought fear and dread of instantaneous nuclear annihilation. It was a nervous sort of optimism.

Evidence of the artist's hand in art was about as fully embraced as it possibly could be. Almost to the exclusion of all else in the case of the Abstract Expressionists.

The boomerang school of design seemed to speak to swept wing jet powered aircraft, with tacit references to speed, motion, and futuristic promises of a better tomorrow. Not to mention that exclusive hallmark of boomerang design, flying off into the distance, and a safe return home.

All in all, it was a hopeful, exuberant, and dynamic period. Yet at the same time, a badly wounded, fearful, and insecure age in need of physical and psychological repair.

Possibly most interesting of all in viewing a show of this sort is the way it removes all the gold plated names and iconic aura of the work on view. Seeing the work stripped bare in such a fashion, forces us to view the designs as nothing more, and nothing less that just what they are. 

In so doing, you can in time see exactly why this period of design is so widely accepted, collected, and revered by seemingly everybody. 

The somewhat nervous hand drawn line of Lucienne Day's black wire frame drawings, over base fields of color, evokes children's art work, modernist masters such as Paul Klee, modern geometric sculptures, stylized plants and flowers, as well as alien unseen worlds on other planets. And in some cases these wildly divergent interpretations can all be seen in the same bit of graphic design. 

One would be hard pressed to come up with any design period that was so adaptable, and open to such a wide range of interpretations as the 1950's. The evidence is right before our eyes in the work on view here.

The show seems to wander off into meaningless irrelevance as it takes Lucienne Day's work into the late 60's and early 70's. Be that as it may, the show is quickly snapped back into line with the work of two of Day's peers, Jacqueline Groag (born in Czechoslovakia), and Marian Mahler, both pre-war British immigrants from Vienna, Austria.

Groag and Mahler both (from the work shown), tend slightly more towards densely populated designs that reference television set designs, biomorphic forms, and modern logo design. While seamlessly melding into Day's work, they seem to have a slightly more futuristic vibe to them.

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Saving the best for last..... the Textile Museum is hosting a mad for Mad Men worthy party Wednesday, August 18 from 6-9 p.m. "MOD MADNESS" will feature cool drinks, noshes and live jazz by the Pete Muldoon Quartet in the museum garden.

Gallery tours led by WE ARE SCIENCE and  music by DJ Jahsonic in the exhibition Art by the Yard: Women Design Mid-Century Britain and enter to win prizes from area businesses and restaurants. Silk screen your own t-shirt or bag to take home with the WashingtonPrintmakers Gallery.

D.C.’s most fashionable will be on hand to nominate the “best mid-century dressed” – so show them your best fedoras, swing skirts and mod shifts! Judges include: Holly Thomas, Justin Young, Pranav Vora, and Nicole Aguirre.

Fee: $10 (includes two drink tickets/Textile Museum members; one drink ticket/non-members). Advance tickets recommended; purchase online at www.textilemuseum.org.

Presented in partnership with ThePink Line Project. Bring your wristband to TheFront Page after the event to receive $2.50 cocktails. Prizes donated by PS7, Teaism, Farmers & Fishers, Eat & Smile and FRESHFARM Markets.Furniture provided by Design Within Reach.

Metro: Dupont Circle, Q Street exit

Art by the Yard; Women Design Mid-Century Britain through September 12, at the Textile Museum, 2320 S Street NW, Washington, D.C. Museum Hours: Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free, with a suggested donation of $5. For further information call (202) 667-0441, or see www.textilemuseum.org .