The Fabrics of Life: The Mellon Collection of Linens at the Oak Spring Garden Foundation
OSGF
In homes of great privilege refined design manifests itself in many ways, but integral to creating a harmonious and comfortable whole are fabrics of all kinds. For Rachel Lambert “Bunny” Mellon, a woman of exquisite taste and lifelong collector of beautiful things, fabrics were a lasting fascination that gave her special pleasure. For much of her long life, Mrs. Mellon collected antique fabrics and quilts, but the opportunity to meld luxury with exquisite design through everyday linens was a further endless attraction. The result, over many decades, is a vast and beautiful inventory now held here at the Oak Spring Garden Foundation.
A selection of the many fabrics associated with Mrs. Mellon confirm that her sense of style was unrelenting and that no detail was too small to escape her notice. The fabrics on display range from whimsical place settings with rabbit and vegetable motifs to embroidered hand towels and pillowcases, together with monogrammed napkins. Throughout, a pervasive theme is her devotion to the world of plants, with artichokes, asparagus, cauliflowers, eggplants, radishes and turnips appearing in exquisite form and often complementing the botanically themed ceramics that also adorned her home and table.
Among the items on display were luxurious printed linens purchased from D. Porthault, together with tea napkins designed by her dear friend Jean Schlumberger and fabricated at the haute couture atelier of Hubert de Givenchy. An especially personal item is a napkin designed by Hubert de Givenchy and Bunny Mellon for her 100th birthday in 2010. Perhaps most astonishing is a Point de Beauvais tablecloth with a large cabbage motif designed by Hubert de Givenchy. The intricate composition recalls many other items in Mrs. Mellon’s collections, from three-dimensional ceramic cabbages to chromolithographed seed packets, and was evidently crafted with extreme care. The hands that created this exquisite piece, and the other beautiful objects on display, are now lost to us but what remains is an astonishing legacy of elegant productions collected by a passionate and discerning patron with an unerring ability to meld beauty, creativity, and style.
