An introduction to the project…
I’m Callum, currently working on archiving and researching around the wonderful collection of British Wool clothing we have which was designed and created for the British Food and Farming Year, 1989. I am currently studying MA in Social History of Art at the University of Leeds and have a background in costume and textiles. My main interests centre around textiles and clothing history for this reason. I also have an interest in the history of communities and the everyday lives of people, as well as the local industrial heritage of Yorkshire.
As part of a project generously funded by the UK Costume Society, I am working to research and develop the archive of a collection of Wool Board garments from the 1980s. This project caught my eye as it drew together a lot of my interests, whilst allowing me to jump into working in an archival capacity which is something I have yet to have the opportunity to do but have been eager to get to grips with.
The British Food and Farming Year 1989 was a series of events created to develop a wider understanding of the role which agricultural industries play in British daily life. Various schemes and events were set up with schools to create an educational aspect to this, to develop in young people an awareness of the importance of agricultural industries – potentially also to create better interest in these industries as future careers.
What is interesting about this particular year of celebration of British Food and Farming is that it also marked the 150th anniversary of the Royal Agricultural Society of England, as well as the centenary of the formation of the position of Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
Within the event calendar of the British Food and Farming Year, the British Wool Marketing Board commissioned a variety of fine worsted cloth from mills and manufacturers across Britain, and brought together a group of designers to create garments using British-made materials; these were then displayed on a catwalk and we believe also in an exhibition of some description.
In the Bradford District Museum & Galleries costume collection we are lucky enough to have been donated some of these garments. In exploring this costume archive, I hope to take a look into the background of these garments, who it was that created them, and how they came to be.
The British Food and Farming Year 1989 sought to promote and celebrate different facets of the British agricultural industry for a variety of reasons.
We can see this through the bringing together of a collection of brilliant designers from across Britain. Bright stars of the 80s British fashion design scene, all of these designers are a testament to their innovative skills and diverse backgrounds as well as British design as a whole.
Finally, some wider social/political context surrounding the event. The British Food and Farming Year 1989 took place during the BSE (Mad Cow Disease) epidemic in the United Kingdom, so it could be suggested that perhaps it was used as a way of promoting the consumption of British products by British people; perhaps to prevent widespread panic or economic collapse.
It also took place under the Thatcher government, which was notable for Thatcher’s insistence upon British self-sufficiency. 1989 was a year in which there had been a lot of growing concern around food production and consumption in Britain. On 16th Feb 1989, Parliament discussed the purpose and organisation of the Food and Farming Year and also saw the discussion of BSE, salmonella enteritidis, food additives, TB in deer, the use of nitrates and fertilisers, food safety measures and legislation, etc.
There are nearly 100 items within this collection, so it will be a big task to catalogue them all and turn over every stone I can find, but I’m looking forward to the challenge!
Check back soon for more blogs written by Callum as he continued the project
