Lecture on historic preservation April 19

Two champions of historic preservation will discuss their partnership in the 2001 Ruth Ketterer Harris Memorial Lecture.

Robert Bitter, co-president of the New York textile firm Scalamandré, and Michael Douglass, director of the Villa Louis Wisconsin State Historical Society site, will speak Thursday, April 19, at 5:30 p.m., L160 Elvehjem Museum of Art.

Both speakers will consider the role of textile technologies in historic preservation. Bitter will approach the subject from his family firm’s acclaimed work in the reproduction of historic textiles. Douglass will talk about the ongoing relationship of research and interpretation in the endeavor, and the relationship Villa Louis has forged with Scalamandré. They will also discuss the development of licensing agreements that have permitted a new and progressive level of partnership between industry and preservation.

A reception at the University Club will follow the lecture, which is co-sponsored by the UW–Madison Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection and the School of Human Ecology. For more information, contact Kirsten Lombard, (608) 262-1162.