Moda Documenta: Museu, Memória e Design – 2015
CONSERVATION PATTERNS COLLECTION OF WALTER RODRIGUES
- REPORT OF A CASE
Manon Salles (USP)
[email protected]
Abstract: This paper is the result of the conservation process of molds collection of designer Walter
Rodrigues, donated to the University Center Senac, Campus Santo Amaro, in 2012.
This collection contains the patterns developed by the designer to create his collections of the
brand Walter Rodrigues, paraded in São Paulo Fashion Week and Fashion Rio 1995 to 2007,
totaling 2,538 molds on paper. This collection became part of this unit Library collection, so it can
serve as a teaching-learning material and the development of research. Here is reported the
donation process and preservation of the collection and how it is used as research material through
Revisiting Walter Project.
Keywords: Walter Rodrigues. Patterns. Molds. Conservation. Brazilian fashion. Material culture.
Walter Rodrigues, the collector
This paper aims to present the entire process of donation of collection of paper molds made
by designer Walter Rodrigues, designed by him for the creation of his collection which was paraded
at São Paulo Fashion Week (SPFW) and Fashion Rio.
During the nearly thirty years in which he's been creating in the Brazilian and international
fashion, Walter Rodrigues became a reference among Brazilian creators who built from the 90s an
authorial fashion. In 1992 the designer launched his brand, having previously worked with Clo
Orozco1. The owner of the brand Huis Clos, according to Walter Rodrigues, had a very specific
vision of what is understood as clothing and framing, awakening his desire to study modeling of
other creators like Yohji Yamamoto, through the exercise of deconstruction and reconstruction of
wardrobe.
In his research on the creation of clothes, Walter Rodrigues deeply studied Madeleine
Vionnet, who inspired many of his collections. From a refined look for designing clothes, modeling
has become a differential in the creations of Walter Rodrigues.
The desire of collecting began when the designer realized the importance of knowledge
about sketching, made through ancient clothes. Since its first research trip to Europe in 1986, he
The designer Clô Orozco (Clotilde Maria Orozco Garcia / 1950-2013) was the owner of the marks Huis Clos and
Maria Garcia. Walter Rodrigues joined the Huis Clos style team as assistant in 1984, where he remained for two
years.
1
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Moda Documenta: Museu, Memória e Design – 2015
began buying clothes at thrift shops and to collect clothes from other established international
designers as Issey Miyake and Jean Paul Gaultier.
Later, while creating his collections to fashion weeks, Walter Rodrigues started to preserve
through his sketchbooks, tissue samples, reference images and modeling developed on paper, all
the stages of his creative process. This material has been kept in his studio, next to the clothes
presented on the runway during all these years.
Therefore, the collection of patterns that was donated to Senac, was part of his personal
collection, which besides the molds account the clothes of the parades of his brand (made during
these twelve years), pieces of national and established foreign designers, and costumes totaling
about 3,000 garments.
In 2012, Walter Rodrigues decided to leave the fashion weeks, closed his shops to devote
to research and redirect his work, and donated his collection of patterns on paper for two
educational institutions. The patterns of wedding dresses were donated to Caxias do Sul University
in Porto Alegre and the patterns concerning the creation of all his collections of "prêt-à-porter", with
2,538 molds was donated to the University Center Senac Campus Santo Amaro in São Paulo.
As an educational institution should receive a collection of molds?
In recent years, in the Brazilian fashion scene several copyright brands like Walter
Rodrigues, André Lima, Neon and others are restructuring or disappearing. Due to this context,
there is a desire of the creators in keeping on an appropriate place their work and their creations.
As there is not in the country yet a thematic museum dedicated to contemporary fashion
that could be interested in receiving these collections, SENAC SP became a reference, perhaps
because of its experience in the conservation of costumes, fabrics, accessories and footwear in
their “modatecas” for more than two decades.
Another more recent initiative of the same educational institution, was the preservation and
exhibition of the collection "Ney Matogrosso, consisting of 220 costumes of singer and performer,
used by him during his 40 years career.
In Santo Amaro University Center there's a library with an area of 6,000
with an
enormous bibliographic collection, a “modateca” on the second floor, a space called Ney
Matogrosso “and technical reserves on the third floor. The undergraduate fashion course was
transferred to this unit since its foundation.
The acceptance of a collection of patterns on paper by the institution concerns the
relationship of the educational proposal of Senac fashion courses that invest in the art of modeling
and clothing construction, making this approach in the formation of their students a differential in
the market .
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Moda Documenta: Museu, Memória e Design – 2015
Probably because of this background, the designer chose this institution to promote the
conservation of its patterns. According to Walter, donating his patterns was a placid exercise of
detachment:
"Those sketches could either be donated or turned into waste. I figured, why
not donate to a school? Because in my final years with my brand I've worked
with professionals from Senac and knew the value it has. In addition to my
affection and closeness of relationship with people from there. I wondered that
we would have the basis of the pieces. "
After receiving the collection, it was necessary at first to define a space to store about
eighty-four large cardboard boxes containing folded and rolled patterns, stored for many years.
As the material would have to be separated, inventoried and sanitized to begin cataloging,
the collection was received and stored initially in an empty classroom in the main building, outside
the library, and this place was chosen also for reasons of contamination, to avoid issues like moth
or insects, that might been in those boxes.
Image1. Opening the boxes with the templates on paper sent by the designer. Source: the author (2013).
To begin the project a company specializing in museum projects, the 'Museum Company"
was hired. From March to June in 2013, they separated the molds by collection (following the
guidelines in notes in the boxes) and the sketch notebooks, many times asking the designer when
there was any doubt.
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The second step was creating a registration form for each pattern containing the respective
parts of the model. For example, to register the modelling of a dress, were considered the
information of the year and season of collection (summer 2010), brief description of the piece with
the number of molds (parts), grading (size of mold p, m, g), location and the date it was registered.
Image2. Registration form of modeling an outfit and parties. Source Company Museum (2013).
Image 3: Modeling Packaging. Source: Company Museum (2013).
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Image 4: Already cataloged molds. Source: the author (2013).
The wrapping was done individually, i.e. each set of molds on the clothing in a plastic bag
with an individual record. At the end of the whole process of cataloging, the patterns were already
separated, identified and stored horizontally on shelves, waiting for the third phase of the project,
consisting of the scan.
Once the first step was concluded (cataloging, packing, keeping on horizontal shelves and
identifying the molds), we started to offer this important material for research with supervision,
initially involving students of the fashion design course and also the stylist.
Project Revisiting Walter
Through this pioneering initiative for an educational institution, that was to receive a
collection of patterns with this relevance, we created in the country the first collection with 2,538
original and scanned patterns. It was a challenge for the professionals involved, with questions
about the conservation process, actions that could be developed in relation to new research and
the criteria for access to this material and exhibitions.
Concluding the phase of cataloging, we had the idea to present all this new process to the
public and students through the homonymous exhibition and a workshop held by the stylist to the
students of fashion course, in May 2014.
The collection "Memoirs of a Geisha" (Winter 2006) was guiding the exhibition2 route with
the presentation of 20 looks, in addition to the sketchbooks and models in the original format and
also scanned scaled-down related to two exposed dresses. This way, visitors and students could
see the clothes (in three dimensions) and their respective patterns (in two dimensions) in large
panels.
To define the concept for the exhibition found it relevant to bring all the costumes created for a single collection and
for being this collection "Memoirs of a Geisha" a milestone in the designer's career for innovations in modeling.
2
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Image 5. In the right pane, parts of the original mold and left, scanned molds small-scale, all referring to the gray dress.
Source: the author (2014).
During the workshop, it was important to the students to have the opportunity to access
the designer creations, original clothes as a direct source, the respective patterns, the sketches,
the testimony and guidance of the designer in research and creation that was developed. In the
record that was made in DVD, stylist reports this process:
"The fascinating was always the partnership between design and
engineering in making a model. What we will talk about is the importance
of these two forces in building a brand, building a style that will
perpetuate the work of two people. My idea to make this donation was
to make this collection of molds a living thing and that instigate students
to seek the reference of my work, a starting point for learning, or even
for inspiration. "
For the last stage of the project, the goal is to scan all the molds so that they can be
available on Audaces system3. In relation to research and access, there is an agreed criterion in
the contract to avoid using improperly the modeling for reproducing new parts without an academic
justification.
3
Audaces is a Brazilian company that develops various software for modeling clothing.
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Image 6. Presentation of student work during the workshop. Source: (DVD Revisiting Walter Rodrigues, 2014).
Still in the last stage of the project, it will be added in the datasheet a photography of the
piece, in addition to existing information as part type, collection, year of creation, etc. For this step
we have to use the resource of oral history through the designer's testimony and professionals who
were his assistants in addition to magazines, the WR brand catalogs and the DVD of his shows.
As a conclusion of this project, it will be released in the system all the digitized material, to facilitate
access.
Image 7. Students and their studies from the exposed clothes. Source: the author (2014)
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Conclusion
The issue of conservation of fashion collections is very complex, and for each of the steps
required as cataloging, cleaning, packaging, repairing and exhibiting, specific knowledge is
required, with actions and practices required to be done without damaging the collection.
In this case, the donated collection was unique because even though being on paper and
not textile, questions about what it would mean this collection within the institution, its preservation
and access, needed to be set immediately by the team involved. There is not a schedule for
receiving any type of donation in educational institutions and few here in the country have
availability, space, budget and professionals interested and motivated to deal with this challenge.
The interest in conservation and the creation of fashion collections and clothing has grown
in Brazil. I believe that if we cannot make the ideal, we can start by the achievable; always seeking
guidance of professionals specialized in conservation and published manuals, increases the
chances to get it right. It is essential that we follow the rules of conduct of the International Council
of Museums (ICOM), which says: "A bad treatment can destroy an object. If in doubt, do nothing. "
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BORGES, Paulo ; BIANCO, Giovanni. O Brasil na Moda. Volume 1 e 2.São Paulo, Editora Caras,
2003
JOORY, Eva. Coleção Moda Brasileira. Walter Rodrigues. São Paulo. Editora Cosac Naify, 2007.
MONNEYRON, Frederic. A moda e seus desafios. São Paulo, SENAC, 2007.
PEARCE, Susan (ed.) Museum studies in material culture. London: Leicester University Press,
1989.
PESEZ, Jean Marie. História da cultura material. São Paulo, Martins Fontes, 2001.
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