Always in Style: Stickley’s Home Hosts Fashion Exhibit

If you’re into fashion design history, check out this beautifully curated exhibit in Morris County during the holidays!

“Styling an American Family: The 1910s at Gustav Stickley’s Craftsman Farms” gives us an inside look at the human form in the home as it might have appeared between 1911-13 when the Stickley family was in residence.

The Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms in Morris Plains is a 30-acre national historic landmark and the centerpiece of Gustav Stickley’s early 20th century country estate. Stickley was a key figure in the American Arts and Crafts movement who combined the roles of designer, manufacturer, architect, publisher, philosopher and social critic. 

I’m not surprised at the popularity of this exhibit because so many people have renewed interest in costumes from the early 1900s.

“The highly successful PBS series, ‘Downton Abbey,’ and the wide public awareness of the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, have combined to build a strong interest in the lifestyles of this time period,” says Stickley Museum’s executive director Heather Stivison. “The opportunity to partner with Syracuse University on a high-quality 1910s-style exhibition came at the perfect time. This exhibition will appeal to a broad audience and will offer visitors a much deeper understanding of life at Craftsman Farms in the 1910s.”

Curator Jeffrey Mayer, an associate professor and program coordinator of fashion design at Syracuse’s College of Visual and Performing Arts, selected the garments in “Styling an American Family” from the fashion design program’s Sue Ann Genet Costume Collection of 1,500 women’s garments and accessories, which Mayer also curates. The exhibition features outfits arranged in eight environmental vignettes styled as moments frozen in time, with such themes as “Motoring,” “Music,” “Entertainment at Home” and “After the Party.”

If you want to do something a little different, grab a friend and head on over to Morris Plains. (And don’t forget to check out the cool gift shop!) Group tours are available for eight or more.The exhibit is open on Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00 and runs until January 6.

The Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms is at 2352 Route 10 West, Morris Plains, 07950.

 

 

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