‘Textiles: The Art of Mankind’: Book review

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From its sumptuous silky cover with its golden text through its 570 pages with 1,058 full colour illustrations this book is an impressive and weighty tome. Its content covers world textiles of every conceivable kind delving into the history of textile art whilst exploring contemporary practitioners; art and artisanal, woven, printed, dyed, patched, quilted, stitched, painted, constructed, the list could go on.

The introduction gives a flavour of what to expect from the book and the author explains that the common denominator for the selection of the images was that they should either be handmade or machine-produced using a craft approach. In Mary Schoeser’s own words she concludes that; “By focusing on superb textiles from around the world, my aim is to inspire textile artists, those who are new to collecting, and those whose choices will shape the future of textile arts .”

‘Textiles: The art of mankind’ by Mary Schoeser

An overview

Impact explores Context, Language, Legacy and Learning, Colour and Global Vision.
Ingredients covers Invention, Intentions, and Alchemy.
Structure includes Non-Tensioned Techniques, Looping, Knotting, Lacing, and Twisting, and Loom-Weaving.
Surface examines Yarns, Stitch, Painting and Printing.
Added Dimensions looks into Letting the Cloth Speak, Patchwork and Quilting, and Textiles Parkour.
Imagery investigates Identity, Narrative, Of Time and Place.

This is a fantastic reference book that would make a wonderful present for anyone who loves textiles and has an interest in the history of textile art.

Sue Stone