International studio (27.1905/1906(1906))

Designing for Silks

TRACING, FLORAL DESIGN

the culture of silk has been, partly because it
has been, a failure in this country, the manu-
facture embraces every product known, with
occasional innovations; there is a market which
seeks good design, true in period even for stuffs
of inferior material; the large mills are more
often directed not alone by business sagacity but
by intelligent culture. To such a field, to an art
whose traditions in European reckoning are almost
prehistoric, it is natural that students should be
attracted. The work in many ways commends itself
especially to women. The laborious eye-straining
task of technical tracing on cross section paper to
prepare the design for the cards seems to be leid
generally to men. But this stage of the work is in
no way essentially a part of the designer’s contribu-

tion. Patterns for weav-
ing carried only as far as
this stage, indeed, make
some consiclerable demand
ona knowledge of mechani-
cal requirements, so that
many women designerscon-
fine themselves to the sim-
pler work of print patterns.
The various stages of de-
sign are sliown herewith in
the illustrations. We are
indebted for them to the
courtesy of Miss Grace H.
Simonson, "whose reputa-
tiomtin this iield led re-
cently to an invitation from
the New York School of
Applied Design for Women
to conduct a course in the
subject. The drawings are
not new. But quite as new
designs are not published,
so former fabrics pass away
from the shops. At one
end or the other such pat-
terns preserve a rarity. In
fact, original matter such
as is here shown in Illus-
tration is, though we would
discreetly disclaim in the
case of Miss Simonson the
Suggestion of the Cumsean
seer we indulged in above,
rather difficult to come by,
miss simonson because drawings of the
sort are not kept.
The rough sketch shows
an idea for a print as submitted to the manufac-
turer. This bold treatment if approved is revised
in a careful tracing, of which the floral design on
this page is an example. From this a finished
sketch is made, according to the weave,. in one wash
or more. A simple conventional design in the
former manner will be found on another page
showing one repeat. The sketch in the Adams
style shows the work where shading is necessary
to indicate the weave, the last stage of the design-
er’s work proper before the finished product.
There is never an over-supply of good work.
The interest aroused among students is encour-
aging and is full of promise for the improvement
of a branch of manufacture already remarkable
for its contribution to Ornament and design.

XIV