A new book, Textile Treasures at Glasgow School of Art, which is a visual tour through the textiles collection at the college, is being launched alongside an exhibition and sale this weekend.

This is the first book to record Glasgow School of Art’s major textiles collection which encompasses work by teachers and students as well as works from numerous gifts from a number of significant collections. The resulting collection covers a wide breadth of textile work ranging from 17th century stumpwork to traditional Scandinavian designs, 1930s pieces by Austrian artist Emmy Zweybruck, jacquard woven samples from Donalds of Dundee to modernist work of the 1930s and pieces from students of the 1990s.

The book is written by Liz Arthur, former curator of dress and textiles for Glasgow Museums and the Burrell collection.  She is the author of a number of books, catalogues and essays including the 2003 retrospective Robert Stewart Design 1946-95.

The exhibition of work and archival materials from the textiles collection opened earlier this week to mark the new publication and it finishes on 19 November 2005.  The exhibition includes work by Jessie Newbery, Ann MacBeth, Kathleen Mann and Kath Whyte as well as new research on the textile archive from current post graduate students.

There will also be a grand emporium of textile work by current staff and students and past graduates for sale. The emporium takes place on between 10am and 4pm on Saturday 19 November 2005. 

The publication, Textile Treasures at the Glasgow School of Art, by Liz Arthur, is published by A & C Black.