We have just had the opening (Thursday 28th March) to the TRC’s latest exhibition called ‘From Dragon Robes to Mao suits. Chinese clothing in the 20th century,' which is about the difference between late 19th century courtly and urban Chinese garments, and those influenced by Western fashions from the 1910s onwards, as well as the complete contrast with a Mao-period Communist outfit from the 1970s. The exhibition helps to explore some of the dramatic changes in Chinese dress in the 20th century.
Opening of the TRC exhibition: 'From Dragon Robes to Mao suits. Chinese clothing in the 20th century', Thursday, 28 March 2024. Photograph by TRC volunteers.
It was a lovely opening! I spoke about the TRC and what we want to achieve, and had the opportunity to personally thank Quirina van Vreeburg, who has recently donated a large and varied collection of Chinese gowns, jackets, shoes, hair ornaments, including items made from kingfisher feathers, as well as collars and tiger hats for boys.
Opening of the TRC exhibition. Photograph by TRC volunteers.Then came a short introduction by the curator of the exhibition, Augusta de Gunzbourg, TRC volunteer, and finally the official opening of the exhibition by Prof. Annetje Ottow, Chair of the Executive Board of Leiden University. Two of the outfits on display in the exhibition belonged to her great aunt, Thecia Velsing-Caspari, and date to the early 1920s when she lived in Indonesia.
The outfits from Indonesia are slightly Westernised versions of Han Chinese dress for the Chinese community living in the former Dutch East Indies. The study of textiles and dress can led you to some unexpected avenues of thought and history!
Augusta de Gunzbourg, curator of the exhibition, explains the concept of the display. Photograph by TRC volunteers.The opening was concluded by an extensive guided tour of the exhibition by Augusta. She talked about the ideas behind it, special items, as well as links between types of garments over a 100-year period (basically from 1850 to 1950).
Several people asked for copies of the text boards – we work on the idea that if someone comes to a TRC exhibition they want to say, ‘That was interesting, I did not know that’, so there are extensive text boards. We don't dumb-down! So it was agreed that the text boards will appear online next week. In addition, we are now working on an online version of the exhibition, with links to all the items on display.
The exhibition will be open to the public from Tuesday 2 April until 27 June 2024, from 10.00 to 15.00 on Monday to Thursday.
Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood, 29 March 2024
