Design
1762 (designed and made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This design is a preparatory technical drawing for a patterned silk. It acted as instructions for the weaver about how to tie up the threads on the loom and then weave in the pattern. It belongs to an archive of similar designs commissioned by a silk manufacturing partnership active in Lyon — the most prestigious centre of the silk industry in Europe from the 1660s onwards — and corresponds in style to the 1760s when patterns were curvaceous. The partnership was called L. Galy, Gallien et cie from 1761 until the beginning of 1771 and it was one of Lyon’s 400 manufacturing concerns mid-century. It kept good records, noting on the back of the designs the number of the design and minimal instructions on how it should be woven.
This design was for a patterned silk with a plain background, approximately 54 centimetres wide. It would have had this motif repeated across the width at least twice. In Lyon, manufacturing regulations dictated the widths in which such silks might be woven.
This design was for a patterned silk with a plain background, approximately 54 centimetres wide. It would have had this motif repeated across the width at least twice. In Lyon, manufacturing regulations dictated the widths in which such silks might be woven.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | painted in gouache on copper engraved paper |
| Brief description | for silk, 1762, French; Galy Gallien, lace meander, red, ribbon stripe |
| Physical description | Mise-en-carte or draft for a woven silk, painted in gouache on copper engraved ruled paper. Pattern of lace meander, ribbon, stripe and floral. On the back the inscription recorded below and the method of tying the lashes on the loom. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Style | |
| Production type | Design |
| Marks and inscriptions | L. Galy, Gallien et compe.
14 septembre 1762
No. 759 Taff[eta] en soye de 8 en 10 36 dix[ain]es à Répétition (The colours are combined into six lashes.)
|
| Object history | Made for the firm of L.Galy, Gallien et cie., this and the other designs of this type were passed down through the partnership. They subsequently came into the hands of a designer called Robert Ruepp of 7 rue Bergère in Paris, who exhibited silks at the Great Exhibitions in Paris in 1900 and in 1925. They subsequently came into the ownership of Sir Frank Warner (of Warner and Co.) and then in 1972 into the collections of the V&A. |
| Production | One of a group of designs made for the silk-weaving partnership of L.Galy, Gallien et compe. between 1761 and 1769. The designer may have been Daniel Symiand (d. 1789) whom they employed for a time. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This design is a preparatory technical drawing for a patterned silk. It acted as instructions for the weaver about how to tie up the threads on the loom and then weave in the pattern. It belongs to an archive of similar designs commissioned by a silk manufacturing partnership active in Lyon — the most prestigious centre of the silk industry in Europe from the 1660s onwards — and corresponds in style to the 1760s when patterns were curvaceous. The partnership was called L. Galy, Gallien et cie from 1761 until the beginning of 1771 and it was one of Lyon’s 400 manufacturing concerns mid-century. It kept good records, noting on the back of the designs the number of the design and minimal instructions on how it should be woven. This design was for a patterned silk with a plain background, approximately 54 centimetres wide. It would have had this motif repeated across the width at least twice. In Lyon, manufacturing regulations dictated the widths in which such silks might be woven. |
| Bibliographic references |
|
| Collection | |
| Accession number | T.407-1972 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | June 24, 2009 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSON
