Etchahan
Dress Fabric
1958 (made)
1958 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
In Europe after the Second World War, couturiers used novel lightweight mixes of wool, mohair and nylon for winter coats and dresses. They favoured screen-printed rayons and silks for summer day wear and shot organza for cocktail and evening dresses.
These different colourways of the same textile are from the archive of Zika Ascher, an innovative textile manufacturer who based himself in London after the annexation of his home country Czechoslovakia in 1939. His wife designed textiles and their company became incorporated in 1942 (Ascher Ltd). Ascher developed a range of different fabrics for use at the top end of the fashion market. He used samples such as these to show prospective clients his wares, and as a record of his output.
These different colourways of the same textile are from the archive of Zika Ascher, an innovative textile manufacturer who based himself in London after the annexation of his home country Czechoslovakia in 1939. His wife designed textiles and their company became incorporated in 1942 (Ascher Ltd). Ascher developed a range of different fabrics for use at the top end of the fashion market. He used samples such as these to show prospective clients his wares, and as a record of his output.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Etchahan |
| Materials and techniques | Open weave mohair and nylon mix, and with bouclé weft |
| Brief description | Dress fabric samples 'Etchahan' in mohair and nylon bouclé, Ascher Ltd., Great Britain, 1958 |
| Physical description | Six swatches of fabric attached (pinned) together at the top with two studs. The original manufacturers' ticket is stapled to the top sample and is printed with the legend 'Ascher (London)'. Each colour is a slightly different size, although all are roughly 8.75 x 11.5 inches. Each sample also bears a small cardboard star containing a number (its number in the range), as follows (from top to bottom): Dirty light blue (no. 28) = 8 x 10.75 inches Bright sugary pink (no. 44) = 9 x 11 inches Dirty orangey yellow (no. 17) = 8.25 x 11 inches Lime green (no. 38) = 8.75 x 11 inches Daffodil yellow (no. 6) = 8.75 x 12 inches (and has a selvedge) Rose pink (no. 54) = 8.75 x 11.5 inches The warp is a plain twisted thread, and the weft is a bouclé thread. The weave is very open, and the fabric is feather-light in weight. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Mass produced |
| Marks and inscriptions | 'Ascher (London) / Etchachan' (On the label stapled to the top swatch.) |
| Credit line | Given by Zika Ascher |
| Historical context | These samples are probably pinned together in this way so that they could be easily shown to clients. The number would allow the client to order the correct shade. |
| Production | Attribution note: In that made on a large scale for an elite ready-to-wear and couture market. |
| Summary | In Europe after the Second World War, couturiers used novel lightweight mixes of wool, mohair and nylon for winter coats and dresses. They favoured screen-printed rayons and silks for summer day wear and shot organza for cocktail and evening dresses. These different colourways of the same textile are from the archive of Zika Ascher, an innovative textile manufacturer who based himself in London after the annexation of his home country Czechoslovakia in 1939. His wife designed textiles and their company became incorporated in 1942 (Ascher Ltd). Ascher developed a range of different fabrics for use at the top end of the fashion market. He used samples such as these to show prospective clients his wares, and as a record of his output. |
| Bibliographic reference | Mendes, Valerie. Ascher. Fabric, Art, Fashion. London: V&A Publication, 1987, pp. 112-6.
|
| Collection | |
| Accession number | T.201-1988 |
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| Record created | April 20, 2007 |
| Record URL |
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