FIDM Museum Collection Conversations: Hairwork Jewelry - Live on Instagram

Jewelry Made of Human Hair
FIDM Museum Curator Interviews Fashion Historian About Hairwork Jewelry
A New Episode of “Collection Conversations”

A Bimonthly Digital Series Highlighting Historic Fashion

On Friday, July 10, 2020, you’re invited to “tune in” when FIDM Museum Curator Kevin Jones will speaks with Caroline Bellios about the Museum’s collection of hairwork jewelry. Hairwork jewelry is made of actual human hair. This episode is part of a new FIDM Museum digital series called “Collection Conversations.”

In its most basic form, a hairwork memento consisted of a snippet of hair enclosed inside a locket or ring. In these instances, the hair is simply stored inside an item of jewelry. The most fascinating examples of hairwork consist of elaborate jewelry made almost entirely out of human hair, which enjoyed peak popularity from the 1850s through the 1880s, dying out almost entirely by the early years of the twentieth-century.

The Guest Expert: Caroline Bellios

Caroline Bellios is a professor of Fashion Design and History at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and an MA student in the department of Visual and Critical Studies. Her current research ranges from 19th century hair jewelry, embodiment, and the transformative nature of touch, to the potential of fashion in the museum space, the memory space, and as a platform for inclusivity. With colleagues in the city, Caroline is building the Chicago Fashion Lyceum, a new collaborative body for fashion discourse.

FIDM Museum Curator and “Collection Conversations” Host:  Kevin Jones

Kevin Jones is Curator of the FIDM Museum, overseeing a 15,000-piece collection and exhibitions. Born in Ventura, CA, Kevin studied fashion design at FIDM and art history at the University of California, Santa Barbara. His fashion and social history expertise encompasses the 18th, 19th, and 20th Centuries. Kevin co-curated the Richard Martin Award-winning exhibition, catalogue, and documentary High Style: Betsy Bloomingdale and the Haute Couture. Before joining the FIDM Museum, he was at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

About FIDM Museum’s “Collection Conversations”

“Collection Conversations” is the new, bimonthly series from the FIDM Museum, airing via Instagram Live that gives the viewer a “behind-the-scenes” glimpse into the world of historic fashion. FIDM Museum has one of the nation’s finest historic fashion collections and is comprised of more than 15,000 objects, dating from the 18th Century.

In each episode, museum curators discuss an aspect of the collection and interview fashion historian colleagues about objects that match their expertise, or chat in-house about collecting, preserving, researching, and exhibiting fashion.

HOW TO WATCH LIVE

WHEN:  The series airs bimonthly on Fridays at 11am PST.

WHERE:  FIDM Musem’s Instagram:  @FIDMMuseum

Follow the FIDM Museum’s social media channels for updates and a chance to submit questions in advance

After the debut, each video will be posted to Youtube and FIDM Museum IGTV