Library Guides: Theatre: Costume Design: Museums

Online Museums

Daphne Dare Digital Exhibit
This collection includes costume and scene designs from more than fifty productions by British designer Daphne Dare (1929-2000). Dare designed for major theatres on both sides of the Atlantic as well as for television and film.
Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection
The mission of the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection is to further "the understanding of human beings within their material and social environments through the study of textiles of artistic, cultural, and historic significance." It is primarily a teaching collection serving the University of Wisconsin-Madison's School of Human Ecology's Design Studies Department. It includes 13,000 textiles and related objects spanning spanning various places, techniques, and time periods.
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The Digital Collections database provides open access to images and cataloging information for almost 9,000 items in the HLATC. This unique trove is very useful for research and instruction in the study of textiles. The collection is especially strong in ethnographic textiles and costumes from all over the world, especially Latin American, African, South and Southeast Asian, and Turkish objects. It is also strong in 19th- and 20th-century American and European home furnishing and apparel fabrics. The database is fully searchable by keyword, title, subject, and geographic area. (Y. Cortes, Skidmore College for CHOICE)
Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog
The collections of the Prints & Photographs Division include photographs, fine and popular prints and drawings, posters, and architectural and engineering drawings. While international in scope, the collections are particularly rich in materials produced in, or documenting the history of, the United States and the lives, interests and achievements of the American people.
Lucas Museum of Narrative Art - Set Design
A collection of narrative art that tells stories from many places and times—some you will recognize, others that will become new favorite tales.
Motley Collection of Theatre and Costume Design
The digitized version of the Motley Collection of Theatre and Costume Design is based on originals housed in the Rare Book & Manuscript Library at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The Motley Collection consists of over 5000 costume and set designs, sketches, notes, photographs, prop lists, storyboards, and swatches of fabric. The collection documents 150 productions of Shakespeare and modern classics, dating from 1932 to 1976, staged in England and the United States, from the West
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The majority of the collection has been digitized, and can be searched by play title, theater name, actor and director names, as well as medium. In addition, production notes have been compiled for selected plays; for example, a researcher interested in a 1954 production of A Midsummer Night's Dream can view excerpts of reviews, commentary from the set and costume designer, Margaret Harris, and a cast list including Vanessa Redgrave who played Helena.
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New York Public Library Digital Collections
This site is a living database with new materials added every day, featuring over 700,000 prints, photographs, maps, manuscripts, streaming video, and more.
Virtual Tours: Museums
Over 300 virtual tours and museums around the world.

La Crosse Area Museums

La Crosse Area Research Center (FREE)
Located in Murphy Library.
One of fourteen regional depositories for the Wisconsin Historical Society. The ARC holds archival records of local governmental bodies and personal papers of people and businesses from five Wisconsin counties: Jackson, La Crosse, Monroe, Trempealeau, and Vernon.
Children's Museum of La Crosse ($8 per person)
member of the international Association of Children's Museums (ACM) and the Association of Science & Technology Centers (ASTC)
Dahl Auto Museum ($5 for adults)
The Dahl Auto Museum celebrates the Dahl family's involvement as automotive dealers spanning over 100 years and 5 generations. It also features the history of the automobile through the eyes of Ford Motor Company, an extensive mascot collection and many beautifully restored classic automobiles from the turn of the century to present.
Hixon House Museum ($10 for adults, $6 for students)
Home of the La Crosse County Historical Society. Historic Hixon House was built in 1858 by pioneer Gideon Hixon, who went on to become a wealthy lumber baron in La Crosse.
La Crosse Area Heritage Center ($5 for adults, $4 for students))
As a curated museum, cultural center, and gathering place, the La Crosse Area Heritage Center is both seeker and keeper of stories that matter. The Heritage Center provides unique opportunities for visitors to discover the astounding stories of all who came before.

Regional Museums

Fort Crawford Museum ($6 for adults)
Located in Prairie du Chien, WI.
The Fort Crawford Museum encompasses three buildings of exhibits on local and medical history, including the Fort Crawford Military Hospital and The Museum of Prairie du Chien.
National Brewery Museum (Partially free, brewery and sampling extra)
Located in Potosi, WI.
The National Brewery Museum™ and Research Library is a venue for breweriana collectors to display their prized artifacts in a world-class museum with many display areas. The Potosi Complex also contains a Transportation Museum and the Great River Road Interpretive Center.
Villa Louis ($13.50 for adults)
Located in Prairie du Chien, WI.
Villa Louis is a 25 acre site with three major historic components. The largest concentration of historic structures is the Villa Louis mansion complex. The archaeological remains of Fort Crawford are visible north of the mansion complex along with a replica log blockhouse reconstructed by WPA workers in the 1930s. Built on the very site of the only War of 1812 battle to take place in what today is Wisconsin.
Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum ($5 for adults, $2 for students))
Located in Pepin, WI.
Birthplace of Laura Ingalls Wilder. Includes museum and Wayside Cabin.
Castlerock Museum ($6 for adults, $4 for students)
Located in Alma, WI.
Castlerock Museum is an arms and armor museum; our exhibits include arms and armor from many points in European history.
Deke Slayton Memorial Space and Bicycle Museum
Located in Sparta, WI.
Containing exhibits about the evolution of the bicycle and aviation, the Deke Slayton Memorial Space & Bicycle Museum is located on the second floor of the historic Masonic Temple in Sparta, Wisconsin. Housed on the first floor is the Monroe County Local History Museum.