Hilos de Tradición (English)

Indigenous influence

The earliest evidence of woven textiles in Mexico dates as far back as 1400 BC. Ancient weavers crafted textiles on a back strap loom and used fibers and colors derived from the plants around them. Traditional garments are not cut and sewn in the European manner of tailoring. Instead they are assembled from squares or rectangles of cloth.

Spanish influence

The Spanish influence on Mexican textiles can be seen in materials, tools, and fit. New fibers were introduced, and the variety of embroidery stitches grew. Lace began to appear more prominently, and styles began reflecting European garments with a more fitted shape.

Weaving

Using fibers like cotton and others derived from yucca, palm, and maguey plants, skilled weavers crafted textiles on a back strap loom. Spinning and weaving were so important to every level of Mexican society that a spindle and weaving stick were placed in the hands of girls as infants.

Embroidery

The history of embroidery in Mexican clothing is centuries old. As Spanish influence in the region increased, needlework skills from around the world made their way into the stitching vocabulary of Mexican artisans. Mexican embroidery patterns speak to the history of Mexico from its earliest days to the present.

Fiestas

Celebration wear for fiestas is a tradition in Mexico. While many Mexicans today wear street clothes based on Western fashions, wearing traditional clothing for holidays and celebrations is a way of showing respect for the past and their cultural heritage.

Dance

Traditional Mexican dances are history lessons set to music and reflect Mexico’s many regions. Each Mexican state has a unique dance style, most of which are influenced by the complex history of Mexico.

Touch & Compare Stations

Four hands-on stations allow visitors to feel and examine up close the basic fabrics used to make the dresses on exhibit, the embellishments used to add texture and movement, and the details of embroidery stitches and woven patterns.

Embroidery Stations

Visitors can try their hand at five traditional stitches commonly used in embroidery. After trying it themselves, the extraordinary craftsmanship of the embroidered dresses will be even more remarkable!

The Brownsville Historical Association (BHA) manages 7 historic buildings and museums in the Mitte Cultural District and Downtown Brownsville: Stillman House Museum, Heritage Museum, Market Square Research Center, Historic Alonso Building, Historic Brownsville Museum, the Old City Cemetery and the Laureles Ranch House Museum. Through exhibitions, educational programs, publications, cultural events, and archival collections, BHA shares Brownsville’s history and cultural arts with the local community.

The collection on which this exhibition is based was formed by the Brownsville chapter of the Pan American Round Table (PART). The original PART was a women's group established in 1916 by Florence Terry Griswold in San Antonio to foster understanding, knowledge, and friendship among the peoples of the Western Hemisphere. Soon other cities in Texas, the United States, Mexico, Central America, and South America established their own PART chapters.

The Brownsville chapter was founded in 1932 by Bessie Kirkland Johnson. She had been a member of the PART chapter in Mexico City and wanted to establish a chapter in her new home. Johnson spent her life living between Mexico and Texas and had a deep respect for the traditional dress of Mexican women. Johnson had a collection of traditional garments from Mexico and she encouraged the women in the Brownsville PART to begin collecting textiles as a way of learning more about Pan American countries and the women who lived there. In 2005, now under the care of the Costumes of the Americas Museum, the textiles began being exhibited in Brownsville’s Dean Porter Park. The collection was transferred to the Brownsville Historical Association in 2021.

For more than 80 years, Brownsville women collected, preserved, and exhibited garments not only from Mexico, but also from different Pan American countries. Today the collection has more than over 3,000 unique and priceless pieces and is one of the largest collections of North, Central, and South American textiles.

• H-E-B Free First Sunday
  October 2, 2022, 10:00a.m. to 5:00p.m.
• Member Reception
  October 6, 2022, 6:30p.m. to 8:30p.m.
• Workshop: Embroidery for Adults and Children
  October 29, 2022, 10:15a.m. to 12:00p.m.
• H-E-B Free First Sunday
  November 6, 2022, 10:00a.m. to 5:00p.m.
• Third Thursdays
  November 17, 2022, 5:00p.m. to 7:00p.m.
• H-E-B Free First Sunday
  December 4, 2022, 10:00a.m. to 5:00p.m.

Hilos de Tradición: Dresses of Mexico is made possible in partnership with the Brownsville Historical Association.

Hilos de Tradición: Dresses of Mexico is sponsored by Univision Austin.

The Bullock Museum, a division of the Texas State Preservation Board, is funded by Museum members, donors, and patrons, the Texas State History Museum Foundation, and the State of Texas.