The imaging of collections within the Archive is ongoing and began in 2021 when Mount Mary University was awarded a substantial grant from the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) to use 360° digital imaging to “expand the reach of its hidden Fashion Archive to inform scholarship on fashion design and the changing role of women throughout history.”

Curator Amanda Cacich and MMU fashion faculty select and feature collections that have significant relevance to our region, our culture, the history of our fashion program and The Fashion Archive itself. Collections by designer Valentina, garments from the Ebony Fashion Fair, collections by American designers Pauline Trigere, Irene, Hattie Carnegie, the wardrobe of chanteuse Hildegarde, and hats by Milwaukee born designer Frank Olive all have historic connections to Mount Mary’s fashion program and its founder Sr. Aloyse Hessburg, SSND.

Mount Mary University’s Fashion Archive consists of hundreds of couture and ready-to-wear garments and accessories as well as fashion art originals and periodicals ranging from the 18^th century to the present with a broad representation of 20^th century fashions. Conceived 50 years ago by Sister Aloyse, the Archive has been called “one of the best regional costume collections in the country” by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Mount Mary’s Fashion Archive is truly a rich educational tool and an important historical resource.

Maintained by the University’s Fashion Department, the Archive is the only such resource in the state of Wisconsin. Many items are one-of-a-kind museum quality pieces, appropriate for both exhibition and research. This vast array of artifacts from internationally renowned designers serves multiple purposes.

Mount Mary University’s Digital Fashion Archive engages the global community by offering scholarly access to so many important designers and collections. The technology supports close examination of historically relevant fashion items throughout the 20th and into the 21st century by highlighting various aspects of high-quality design and general clothing construction, fabric selection and embellishment to provide information and inspiration to students, instructors and scholars far beyond Mount Mary.

The Digital Fashion Archive features impressive collections designed by 20th century American women who accomplished notoriety in an industry traditionally dominated by men. Bonnie Cashin, Irene and Hattie Carnegie created clothing for women who were active in the community and on the job. Some, including Pauline Trigere and Valentina were not previously well represented online. Their stories often include connections to our region, and Trigere and Cashin actually visited classes to interact with students in Mount Mary University’s fashion department!

Eunice Johnson, co-founder of Johnson Publishing in Chicago and Essence Magazine loved fashion and style and used it for black self-empowerment. For 50 years, from 1958 until 2009, Johnson sponsored the Ebony Fashion Fair, a traveling fashion show that was a rite of passage for black women across the country. Black models and many black designers were featured on the runway, making high fashion accessible to all. Mount Mary University hosted four Ebony Fashion Fair shows between 1996 and 2001 and subsequently purchased 34 garments for the Fashion Archive. This digitized collection is important to fashion and cultural history in America and celebrates Eunice Johnson, a fascinating role model who championed persistence and dedication to an idea.

The Digital Fashion Archive is an important artistic and aesthetic resource. Members of the arts community can easily research and utilize the digital archive for information and inspiration to help them authentically incorporate fashion into their own work. Museums and other institutions can utilize the site to identify and request access to items to include in exhibitions of their own.

Items from the Fashion Archive have been part of exhibitions at The Milwaukee Art Museum, Ten Chimneys, The Museum of Wisconsin Art, the Pabst Mansion, the Wisconsin State Historical Society, and many other venues.