san francisco cottages & gardens April/May 2016

COTTAGESGARDENS.COM | APRIL/MAY 2016

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TEXTILES

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R E N O W N E D S C H O L A R A N D D E A L E R K AT H L E E N TAY L O R
C E L E B R AT E S T H E L E G A C Y A N D F U T U R E O F A N T I Q U E T E X T I L E S

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sfc&g cottagesgardens.com april/may 2016

True Blue ( left to right) Two

mid-20thcentury African (Mali)
woven, indigo resist-dyed cotton
cloths. A selection of textile tomes
at the Lotus Collection showroom.
See Resources.

Enduring Design French and English silk and cotton fabrics ( left), dating from the early 19th and 20th centuries. Kathleen Taylor (above) holds a
Japanese indigo resist-dyed (shibori) fabric. See Resources.

that are a mixture of chance and intention. She also has a selection
of 20th-century textiles that includes Art Deco fabrics, bold 1960s
op art-patterened cottons and Fortuny silks.
Taylor is always fascinated to see how the interior designers and
collectors she works with will use pieces from her collection. Framed,
made into decorative screens, used for upholstery or even pillows,
they can transform an interior and add layers of richness and texture;
in particular, if the interior is a very modern one, she notes, they
can provide a sense of contrast and patina. And with their unique,
handmade beauty and history, each piece has a story thats just
waiting to unfold.
Frances Homan Jue

PHOTOGRAPHS BY JOHN MERKL

eathery green leaves in an 18th-century French

tapestry; lush flowers and vines rambling over a
hand-painted ceremonial hanging from Sumatra;
inky Japanese indigos. Stepping into the Lotus
Collection showroom, where Kathleen Taylor deals in
museum-quality antique textiles, its hard to know where
to look first. But thats where this trained art historians
graciousness and scholarship comes in; Taylor, who works
with museums as well as interior designers and collectors,
is delighted to share her knowledge. One of the countrys
leading sources for antique decorative textiles, Taylor recently
moved from her iconic Jackson Square showroom of over
25 years to a sunny new
appointment-only space
in Sausalito, enabling her
to focus on serious visitors
and clients, and to do
researcha very important
aspect of the work.
Taylors philosophy on
choosing fabrics for her
collection is simple but
thoughtfulshe looks for
pieces that are beautiful,
unique and usually handmade. Drawers and shelves
in the showroom are filled
with treasures from Europe,
Asia and Africa. A piece
of Spitalfields silk-satin
from late 18th-century
London features brightly
colored flowers exquisitely
woven into a glowing, pearly background. A rich, red silk from late
17th-century France borrows colors and floral patterns from the Middle
East and is woven through with gleaming gold thread. In an age of
dim candlelight, Taylor notes, designers were genius at maximizing
the possibilities of light reflection.
These, of course, were very costly fabrics, but she also loves indigodyed cottons, which have much humbler origins but a great beauty of
their own. Most come from Japan and West Africa, where they were
made using simple plant color and resist-dye techniques. In Japan,
for instance, tiny rice grains are stitched onto fabric before dying,
then removedrevealing beautifully intricate yet minimal patterns

Stitch In Time A late

17th-century Chinese
export (Macao) yellowsilk embroidered table
cover (above). A circa1740, brocaded English
cream silk (right), with
a floral design. An early
20th-century, French
silk-velvet (far right),
stenciled with gold paint.
See Resources.

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