Acadian Brown Cotton: The Fabric of Acadiana

FAIN: GE-269603-20

University of Louisiana at Lafayette (Lafayette, LA 70503-2014)
Jolie Johnson (Project Director: August 2019 to April 2021)
LouAnne Greenwald (Project Director: April 2021 to January 2022)

Development of a temporary exhibition, associated satellite exhibitions, and a series of public programs exploring the cultural significance of the Acadiana tradition of brown cotton textile production.

The Hilliard Museum will present an exhibition on Acadian brown cotton utilizing an interdisciplinary approach to better understand the historical significance and cultural impact of the 250+-year-old Acadian brown cotton textile tradition, unique to the southwestern region of Louisiana known as Acadiana. The Hilliard will employ interpretive text, soundscapes, video, photography, archival documentation and a wide variety of textiles to highlight the exhibition’s primary themes of how traditions persist and are transmitted, as well as geography’s influence on culture. The exhibition will also produce new research on community mapping, genealogy, and the tradition’s origins in early modern France. This is a community-focused project; more than a dozen satellite venues in rural areas around Acadiana will concurrently mount small, pop-up style exhibitions of brown cotton textiles and tools from their permanent collections.

Media Coverage

Acadian Brown Cotton: Fabric of Acadiana (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Ben Hickey
Publication: Shuttle Spindle and Dyepot
Date: 6/1/2021
Abstract: Scadian Brown Cotton: The Fabric of Acadiana is a landmark exhibition that is on view at the Hilliard Art Museum, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, now through June 30, 2021. The exhibition celebrates and commemorates a vibrant 250-year tradition.
URL: file:///C:/Users/C00067768/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/ARGK2TWS/40-43%20Acadia%20Brown%20Cotton_v2_LZ.pdf

How to Present a Virtual Exhibition (Media Coverage)
Author(s):
Publication: Country Roads Magazine
Date: 1/25/2021
Abstract: A conversation with Susan Gottardi on the shift to online art exhibitions at the Hilliard Museum
URL: https://countryroadsmagazine.com/art-and-culture/virtual-exhibition-hilliard-museum/

Associated Products

Acadian Brown Cotton: The Fabric of Acadiana | Learn More about the Exhibit (Course or Curricular Material)
Title: Acadian Brown Cotton: The Fabric of Acadiana | Learn More about the Exhibit
Author: Paddy Bowman
Author: Olivia Morgan
Abstract: Links provide access to documents, handouts, activities, and videos developed to enhance the educational experience of the Acadian Brown Cotton exhibition. Each category will allow you to delve more deeply into this important cultural tradition.
Year: 2020
Primary URL: http://thefabricofacadiana.org/learn/
Primary URL Description: "Learn" page of the Acadian Brown Cotton website
Audience: K - 12

Acadian Brown Cotton: Fabric of Acadiana (Exhibition)
Title: Acadian Brown Cotton: Fabric of Acadiana
Curator: Benjamin Hickey
Curator: Elaine Bourque
Curator: Sharon Donnan
Abstract: This landmark exhibition is the most comprehensive project to date dedicated to the cultural traditions associated with the farming and weaving of brown cotton in Acadiana. Acadian Brown Cotton: The Fabric of Acadiana is much like the blankets on view in that it is composed of many, many threads. The exhibition tells several stories that, taken as a whole, represent an ambitious synthesis of folklore, anthropology, economics, and art history. First, the manner in which weaving practices were passed largely from mother to daughter is conveyed through genealogical analyses that illustrate, in a general sense, how weaving as a cultural idiom in Acadiana tended to spread geographically. The weaving process is explained and illustrated through home furnishings that were common in Acadian households before the mid-twentieth century. Viewers will learn how economic conditions in Acadiana played an important role in the revitalization of brown cotton weaving, especially in the last 150 years, and how the current wave of weaving revitalization has become an economic and cultural force. Specifically, emphasis is placed on the community organizing activities of the non-profit Field to Fashion in Acadiana. Finally, Acadian Brown Cotton: The Fabric of Acadiana addresses brown cotton weaving from the standpoint of visual culture. Social documentary photographer Leah Greaff’s photographs reflect a keen eye and provoke concepts of artistic intention, symbolism, art as commodity, and the difficulty of navigating between artistic classifications such as decorative and fine art. Master spinner and weaver Elaine Larcade Bourque, as well as Ben Koch, Lena Kolb, LaChaun Moore, and Francis Pavy are some of the artists whose work is included in the exhibition. Their creations illustrate how weaving traditions can or have become more symbolically important than subsistence practitioners ever thought possible.
Year: 2020
Primary URL: http://thefabricofacadiana.org/look/
Primary URL Description: Link to the genealogy, historic maps, photographs, furniture, tools, and brown cotton textiles. Learn about the historical significance and the cultural impact of the Acadian brown cotton tradition. Drawing from the expertise of several highly respected cultural authorities, the exhibition highlights the value and artistry of Acadian brown cotton.

The Story of a Brown Cotton Seed (Film/TV/Video Broadcast or Recording)
Title: The Story of a Brown Cotton Seed
Writer: Olivia Morgan
Writer: Paddy Bowman
Writer: Serge Billeaudeaux
Director: NA
Producer: Hilliard Art Museum
Abstract: Animation for children to learn about brown cotton from planting to harvest.
Year: 2020
Primary URL: http://thefabricofacadiana.org/watch/
Primary URL Description: Link to The Story of a Brown Cotton Seed animation
Access Model: Open access
Format: Web

Cleaning to Weaving (Film/TV/Video Broadcast or Recording)
Title: Cleaning to Weaving
Writer: Leah Graeff
Director: Leah Graeff
Producer: Hilliard Art Museum
Abstract: Silent video demonstrating the processing of brown cotton from cleaning to weaving.
Year: 2020
Primary URL: http://thefabricofacadiana.org/look/
Primary URL Description: Link to "Cleaning to Weaving" video
Access Model: open access
Format: Web

Acadian Brown Cotton: Fabric of Acadiana (Web Resource)
Title: Acadian Brown Cotton: Fabric of Acadiana
Author: Hilliard Art Museum
Abstract: Microsite to represent the exhibition, Acadian Brown Cotton: Fabric of Acadiana and for the distribution of related educational resources
Year: 2020
Primary URL: http://thefabricofacadiana.org
Primary URL Description: Link to Acadian Brown Cotton: Fabric of Acadiana exhibition, educational resources and videos

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