A Passion for Silk: The Road from China to Europe

It is with great pleasure that we write this preface to the catalogue of A Passion for Silk: The Road from China to Europe. My colleagues (Anne Camilli and Laure Raibaut) and I had the unusual opportunity of being able to exhibit a wonderful selection of Chinese silks from Chris Hall’s renowned collection, supplemented by loans from other Hong Kong and European lenders. The Chinese section illuminates the evolution of luxurious, polychrome, figured silk from the Han dynasty through the 20th century. The impact of Chinese silks across Asia and the Middle East transformed local practices, with artisans adopting silk into their own cultures; this in turn generated cross-cultural exchanges between the Han Chinese and their nomadic neighbours as each learned from the other. Of course these were not the only routes of the famous silk trade.

The narrative continues by focusing on the global impact of Chinese silk, and by representing the richness and variety of European silk, especially that of France, the dominant European silk producer from the 17th through the 19th centuries, in a section curated by Anne Camilli. Learning from Italian artisans—the first to develop sericulture on European soil—the French initially copied foreign silk motifs and weaves before creating their own. In the process they revolutionised silk technology, introducing mechanical looms capable of weaving polychrome figured fabrics, as well as developing certain weaves less known in China. The cycle of influence continued, with China, from the Qing period on, adopting certain European patterns and later importing echanically-made silk. Silk’s appeal remains as strong today as in the past, its brilliance, lightness and flexibility making it the material of choice for luxury furnishings, haute couture, as well as for mass-produced garments. Its unique qualities have even led to its application in the fields of medicine, science and technology—the story of silk continues.