UNT System
What: Painting the Town: 1920s High Style — An exhibition of ’20s clothing styles from the Texas Fashion Collection at the University of North Texas, New York fashion designer Regina Kobler and the private collection of Caralee Biery Smith
When: Oct. 9 (Friday) — Dec. 18 (Friday)
Hours: Noon to 5 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays
Where: Fashion on Main, UNT System Building (formerly the Universities Center at Dallas building), 1901 Main St. in downtown Dallas (map)
Cost: Free
Contact: (214) 752-8151
Delicate beaded flapper gowns, seldom taken out of storage, will roar into the spotlight in “Painting the Town: 1920s High Style,” an exhibition from the renowned Texas Fashion Collection in the University of North Texas College of Visual Arts and Design. This exhibition was conceived to coincide with the opening of the AT&T Performing Arts Center this fall in the Dallas Arts District.
In addition to the fragile silk and velvet beaded flapper gowns from the university’s collection, the exhibition will feature beaded dresses from the private collection of Fort Worth vintage clothing collector Caralee Biery Smith, never-before-seen photographs from New York fashion designer Regina Kobler and four rare women’s pantsuits from Kobler’s personal wardrobe.
The free exhibition takes place Oct. 9 (Friday) to Dec. 18 (Friday) at Fashion on Main, located in the UNT Systems Building (formerly the Universities Center at Dallas building), 1901 Main St. in downtown Dallas. Hours are noon to 5 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays. Call (214) 752-8151 for information.
The Kobler photographs, salvaged from a scrapbook, were shared with the collection courtesy of Richardson resident Inarose Bogen and her sister, Sally Hardy, of Oakland, Calif., who are nieces of Regina Kobler.
“Each flapper dress is a unique work of art in itself. They are rarely shown due to their fragile condition,” said Myra Walker, director and curator of the Texas Fashion Collection. “The Regina Kobler pantsuits from the 1920s are evidence that emancipated women were interested in comfort and function in their wardrobe. We feel privileged to have this opportunity to show these unique items.”
About Fashion on Main
UNT opened Fashion on Main at the Universities Center at Dallas — now the UNT System Building — in September 2006 as the first permanent exhibition space dedicated solely to the Texas Fashion Collection, considered one of the most important historic fashion collections in the nation.
About the Texas Fashion Collection
The collection began in 1938 when Stanley and Edward Marcus preserved examples of top designers' works in honor of their aunt Carrie Marcus Neiman, a co-founder of the Neiman Marcus store. The Carrie Marcus Neiman Foundation maintained the collection after her death in 1953, and the Dallas Fashion Group took over in the 1960s at the Apparel Mart. The collection, then known as the Dallas Museum of Fashion, came to the UNT campus in 1972 and was later renamed the Texas Fashion Collection. It has grown from 3,000 items to more than 15,000 historic items today.
