Re-discovering Old Ideas: More Scrapbooks from Cora Ginsburg

Exactly one year ago, I wrote a blog post about Cora Ginsburg, the great collector and dealer of antique costumes and textiles, and her scrapbooks. Titi Halle, who worked with Cora and carries on the business of Cora Ginsburg LLC today, gave me those books, each filled with cuttings of interiors from the 1950's and later that drew Cora's attention. Recently, several more of Cora's volumes have surfaced, these focusing on curtains and bed hangings.

I have long admired Cora for her fresh take on historic styles and fabrics, many of which she had a key role in rediscovering and re-presenting through her gallery. She was keenly aware that old things take on a new life in new settings and how they are used says a great deal about the present day. In studying this new set of books, I find it interesting to note that when you look back at old restorations or period recreations, you can almost always tell what decade they were made in, even if every effort is made for archeological correctness. These scrapbooks from the 60's had some pretty mod Georgian style beds and curtains--so mod that I almost want to plant one in a case study house...