It features about 50 items of textiles from around the world, collected by prominent Dunedin textile artist Margery Blackman, who has given the items to the museum for display in the People of the World gallery.
Museum humanities curator Moira White said most of the textiles on show came from West Asia and Indonesia, and included a variety of bags, animal trappings, clothing and more.
‘‘The pieces in the exhibition are wonderful. The selections she made for her own collection were often grounded in her fascination with the way they were made, as much as with their visual appeal and social significance.’’
A longstanding member of the Dunedin visual arts community, Mrs Blackman was a founding member of the Dunedin Guild of Spinners and Weavers.
Her career as a tapestry weaver began with classes she took in Edinburgh in 1976.
Ms White said that creative experience had a critical role in Mrs Blackman’s later textile activities.
‘‘It gave her insights into techniques of manufacture and construction that have continued to inform her research into textile practices around the world.’’
Mrs Blackman has organised numerous textile exhibitions, largely at Otago Museum, including ‘‘Islamic Rugs’’ in 1975, ‘‘Indonesian Weaving’’ in 1981, ‘‘Treasures from Maori Women’’ in 1989, and more recently, ‘‘From Emperor's Court to Village Festival’’ — an exhibition of Chinese textiles.
Her work is held in the Dunedin Public Art Gallery and Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.
The exhibition runs until July 4 next year.
