Textile Historian and Master Weaver to Speak at McFaddin-Ward House Lecture Oct. 10

Textile Historian and Master Weaver to Speak at McFaddin-Ward House Lecture Oct. 10

Beaumont, TX; Sep. 26, 2024 – Internationally-known textile historian, designer and master weaver Rabbit Goody will detail the fascinating process of creating historically accurate textiles for museums, the film industry and clothing companies during her free public lecture, “A Stitch in Time: Historic Textiles for Museums, Movies and Designers,” presented by the McFaddin-Ward House on Thursday, Oct. 10, at 6:30 p.m. in the museum’s Visitor Center Lecture Hall (located at 1906 Calder Avenue in Beaumont).

“I’d like to very much share what it’s like to be doing the kind of work we do in America, right now, in a time when manufacturing—the kind of textile manufacturing we do—has died,” Goody said.

A respected historian of American textiles with a remarkable ability to reanimate the past through fabric, Goody says she knew what to do from the very beginning “as if from some past life” when she started weaving without formal instruction at age 16.

“I compare it to people who can pick up a musical instrument and play,” Goody said. “There’s some innate knowledge that’s in your D.N.A. somehow. It just made sense to me. Weaving is really just mathematics, and so, I didn’t have to study a lot to be able to do it.”

For the past three decades, Goody’s studio, Thistle Hill Weavers located in Cherry Valley, New York, has been weaving luxurious custom fabrics for the museum field, the film industry and designers of home décor and clothing lines. As owner and operator of Thistle Hill Weavers, Goody has created historically accurate textiles for historic houses such as George Washington’s Mount Vernon, Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello and The Lincoln Birthplace. Her studio has also produced custom fabrics for numerous films, including “Master and Commander” (2003), “Lincoln” (2012), “Road to Perdition” (2002) and “Winter’s Tale” (2014).

“The most challenging and fun thing is to be asked to reproduce a destroyed textile or to recreate a bed hanging for a particular period of time, and to do the research and end up producing something that is outrageously beautiful and also that the world hasn’t seen in a couple hundred years,” Goody said. “There are some extremely stellar pieces my staff has gotten together.”

Goody is also the founder and director of the Textile History Forum and serves as consultant to museums and the film industry. Earlier this year, she was featured in “Smithsonian Magazine.”

In conjunction with the lecture, Goody will offer a free Textile Identification Clinic for the public, which will be held at the McFaddin-Ward House Visitor Center on Friday, Oct. 11, from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. Suggested items to bring include quilts, blankets, tablecloths, wall hangings, samplers and historic clothing. Item limit is three pieces per person. Reservations are encouraged by calling 409-832-2134.

McFaddin-Ward House lectures are free and open to the public, but space is limited. Doors open at 6 p.m.

For those unable to attend, the lecture will be streamed live on the museum’s Facebook page (facebook.com/McFaddinWardHouse). The full lecture will also be available for viewing on the museum’s YouTube Channel (youtube.com/@mcfaddinwardhouse) and website (mcfaddin-ward.org/about/videos) after the event.

Built in 1905-1906 in the distinctive Beaux-Arts Colonial style, the McFaddin-Ward House reflects the lifestyle of the prominent family which lived in the house for 75 years. The museum features free tours, educational programming, year-round events, a carriage house, and gardens.

For more information, call 409-832-2134 or visit mcfaddin-ward.org.