Drapery is a general word referring to cloths or textiles (Old French draperie, from Late Latin drappus). It may refer to cloth used for decorative purposes – such as around windows – or to the trade of retailing cloth, originally mostly for clothing, formerly conducted by drapers.
In art history, drapery refers to any cloth or textile depicted, which is usually clothing. The schematic depiction of the folds and woven patterns of loose-hanging clothing on the human form, with ancient prototypes, was reimagined as an adjunct to the female form by Greek vase-painters and sculptors of the earliest fifth century and has remained a major source of stylistic formulas in sculpture and painting, even after the Renaissance adoption of tighter-fitting clothing styles. After the Renaissance, large cloths with no very obvious purpose are often used decoratively, especially in portraits in the grand manner; these are also known as draperies.
For the Greeks, as Sir Kenneth Clark , clinging drapery followed the planes and contours of the bodily form, emphasizing its twist and stretch: "floating drapery makes visible the line of movement through which it has just passed.... Drapery, by suggesting lines of force, indicates for each action a past and a possible future." Clark contrasted the formalized draperies in the frieze at Olympia with the sculptural frieze figures of the Parthenon, where "it has attained a freedom and an expressive power that have never been equalled except by Leonardo da Vinci". Undraped male figures, Clark observed, "were kept in motion by their flying cloaks."
Custom Drapery Miami
A curtain (sometimes known as a drape, mainly in the United States) is a piece of cloth intended to block or obscure light, or drafts, or (in the case of a shower curtain) water. A curtain is also the movable screen or drape in a theater that separates the stage from the auditorium or that serves as a backdrop.
Curtains are often hung on the inside of a building's windows to block the passage of light, for instance at night to aid sleeping, or to stop light from escaping outside the building (stopping people outside from being able to see inside, often for privacy reasons). In this application, they are also known as "draperies". Curtains hung over a doorway are known as portières. Curtains come in a variety of shapes, materials, sizes, colors and patterns. They often have their own sections within department stores, while some shops are completely dedicated to selling curtains.
Curtains vary according to cleanability, ultraviolet light deterioration, oil and dust retention, noise absorption, fire resistance, and life span. Curtains may be moved by hand, with cords, by press-button pads or remote-controlled computers. They are held out of the way of the window by means of curtain tie-backs. Measuring curtain sizes needed for each window varies greatly according to the type of curtain needed, window size, and type and weight of curtain.
Curtains are a form of window treatment, and complete the overall appearance of the house. Window treatment helps control the ambiance and flow of natural light into the room. The effect of drapery or curtains is best seen in daylight, and with proper indoor light positioning, can look attractive even at night.
History
From evidence found in excavation sites at Olynthus, Pompeii and Herculaneum, portieres appear to have been used as room dividers in classic antiquity. Mosaics from the 2nd to 6th century show curtains suspended from rods spanning arches. In England, they began to replace wooden shutters towards the end of the 16th century.[citation needed]
Light control and insulation
Curtains are manufactured from a variety of thick fabrics, each with a differing degree of light absorption and heat insulating qualities. For maximum temperature control, the curtain gap to the window should be small, with minimum convection drafts below or above the curtain. Various architectural structures around the curtain can minimize these air drafts, but usually they are just used for decoration and make rooms feel more cozy.
A sheer or net curtain is one that is made from translucent fabric, such as a loosely woven polyester voile or a cotton lace. Sheer curtains allow a majority of light to be transmitted through the fabric, with the fabric weave providing a basic level of UV protection while retaining maximum visibility outward through the curtain. Sheer curtains are sometimes referred to as "privacy curtains" in reference to their screening abilities; during the day most sheer fabrics will allow people inside the home to see the outside view while preventing people outside the home from seeing directly into the home. Due to the loose weave in sheer fabrics, these types of curtains offer very little in the way of heat insulation.
Uncoated fabrics provide the next level of heat insulation and light absorption. Uncoated fabrics constitute the vast majority of fabrics used in curtains, and are composed of a tightly woven fabric, most typically a cotton/polyester blend, which is mostly opaque when viewed in ambient light. Uncoated fabrics provide a reasonable level of heat insulation due to the tight weave of the fabric. However, the fabric itself is typically not thick enough to completely absorb strong light sources. As a result, when curtains made from uncoated fabrics are closed in an attempt to block out direct sunlight, light will still be visible through the curtain.
A roll-down curtain
Coated fabrics consist of a standard uncoated fabric with an opaque rubber backing applied to the rear of the fabric to provide improved light absorption. To create a coated fabric, a liquefied rubber polymer is applied in a single coat to an uncoated fabric and subsequently fused dry by means of a heated roller, in much the same way that a laser printer applies toner to a sheet of paper before fusing it dry. A fabric that has been through the coating process once is considered a "1-pass-coated" fabric, anecdotally referred to as "dim-out" or "blackout" because of the fabric's ability to absorb approximately 50-70% of a direct light source. To improve the light absorption of a fabric it is possible to re-coat a fabric up to a maximum of "3-pass-coated", which is considered sufficient to block out 100% of a direct light source, hence such fabrics are referred to as "blockout-coated".
Maximum light absorption and heat insulation in a curtain is created through a lined curtain, which typically consists of an uncoated fabric at the front to provide the look and feel of the curtain, with a separate coated fabric attached at the rear to provide the insulative qualities. The coated fabric is typically referred to as a lining, which simply refers to a coated fabric that does not have any particular color or pattern.
Curtains may be held back with tie-backs (a loop of cloth, cord, etc., placed around a curtain to hold it open to one side; typically passed through a ring on a hook attached to the wall, and fastened with a knot, button, or velcro; often adorned with tassels) or may be closed and opened with sticks called draw-pulls (rods made of plastic, wood, or metal that can be twisted and/or pulled) or curtain rods which are attached either to the runner or to the first hook. On some curtain rails/poles, there is a pulley system for opening and closing called a "corded curtain track". The knobs at the end of these cords are called cord pulls or "acorns". A roll-down or drop-down curtain has its fabric rolled around the curtain rod and is lowered down from above by a separate device (such as pictured at right) or by pulling the fabric itself, with curtains using the latter mechanism being called pull-down curtains.
A curtain hook stopper is a device used to stop the curtain from falling off the end of the curtain rail.
Commercial types
With the increase in single family homes during the last century, the curtain and drapery industries witnessed simultaneous growth in the demand for their products. Commercial interests also grew during that time as many companies tried to supply institutions, hotels and other public places. Pre-made curtain are sold in "panels" in stores, typically around 7 feet in length. Cubicle curtains are a popular choice for privacy in hospitals and medical facilities.
Commercial sized curtains are commonly used in restaurants, cinemas, and theatre stages.
The now well known shower curtain was once called the bath curtain, and were once made of cloth, proving difficult to soak up the water.
Styles
Curtains can be used to give a room a focal point. There are at least twenty different styles of curtains and draperies which can be used in window treatment.
Flat panel curtains are simple and versatile: to make them, pieces of fabric are hemmed on all four edges and the final rectangular or square piece is hung from curtains poles with clip-on rings or something similar. If pleated, the look is strongly influenced by the fullness of the pleats.
Panel Pair Curtains are also known as double panel curtains. They refer to two curtain panels hanging on either side of the window. This is the most common style.
Tab top curtains are made with narrow straps, that loop or tie at the top edge and hung from the curtain pole.
This curtain style is often designed as two stationary panels at the sides of a window.
Grommet curtains are hung by threading the curtain pole through a hole in the top of the fabric. This could be either a cut-out hole with the edges finished by a row of stitching or it could use a grommet to prevent fraying.
Sash curtains are used to cover the lower sash of the windows.
Rod pocket curtains have a channel sewn into the top of the fabric. A curtain rod is passed through the channel to hang.
Thermal or blackout curtains use very tightly woven fabric, usually in multiple layers. They not only block out the light, but can also serve as an acoustic or thermal dampener.
Curtain liners are used to protect actual curtains from getting wet.
Source: Wikipedia
The history
of the Drapery begins with the Romans.
This civilization was the first to give domestic use to the ancestor
of the Drapery. Two hundred years before Christ they were employed
to cover doors and windows, they called them aulae and they were made
of materials like silk and velvet. They were also used as velum by
judges in their hearings when they were going to dictate a sentence.
In addition, as the rooms were not divided by walls, the ancestors of
the Drapery served as divisions in the dwellings.
The
first sign that began to emerge from a
curtain, occurred towards the Middle Ages,
approximately between the fifth and fifteenth centuries. For that
moment he was seen as an insulator of the cold. The castles in Europe
were not as they are shown in fairy tales. The comforts were reduced
as well as the windows whose design did not have glass. Their sizes
were small to cover them in the cold times.
With classicism,
in Europe of the thirteenth century the norm was moderation and
symmetry. That's why in general the interior design things like
furniture and Drapery were made in a single material with different
color. It is then that a piece called gallery appears, a heavy
element of wood from which the first Drapery were hung.
At
the arrival of the fourteenth century chimneys began to be built. By
the time the beds were covered with canopies and heavy Drapery that
protected people from the cold. In turn, the ceremonial canopy
emerges. It was created to protect and adorn the passage of the
nobles, in addition to the subjects kneel in his presence.
The
curtain begins to take place as a real ornament with the beginning of
Renaissance. The looms are bought in middle east and begin to be part
of the decoration in corridors of the palaces. Each piece has flora
and fauna motifs, geometric elements, materials such as silk, velvet
and draperies that strengthen popularity. All this to give way to the
bases that would create the Baroque.
The 17th and 18th century
represents the Baroque in all its splendor. The mixture of
scenography and drapes gives as fruits the cult to the curtain, where
the place of decorative is assumed.
If we understand the
cortinería as an inseparable companion to architecture, we
will understand more easily the changes that existed between each
transition of styles.
The Baroque with respect to the
Renaissance does not present forceful changes in its architecture.
High quality products such as bohemian glass, ceramics, Persian rugs,
etc. were manufactured.
In addition Napoleon's rise to power
represented a considerable increase in wealth and therefore the need
to have discretion and privacy.
Looks and gossip were to be
avoided at all costs; that's where the "stuffing fabric"
comes from. Here is where walls, doors and windows were
ostentatiously decorated to create privacy. These were draped, they
were painted, they had frets, jewels and other sumptuous
details.
The designs were very elaborate and of great weight
to contain much fabric. An interesting point of the Baroque is that
the combination of colors between Drapery and upholstered furniture
began to take hold. All this led to the French becoming true masters
of the curtain.
The Baroque dies to give way to Rococo,
the artistic movement featuring eccentricity, pastel colors,
mythological figures, animals and nudes. In the Drapery silk-like
fabrics decorated in Turkish and Chinese styles
predominate.
Arriving a little to the present of the
history of the Drapery, between centuries
XX and XXI one of the objectives of the buildings was to offer
greater quality of life to the people. In addition to all the
economic and social changes that have represented the last 100
years.
To our time we have secured the decorative paper to the
Drapery, they are a tangible reflection of our personality and there
are hundreds of styles, materials and sizes.
Source: Don Cortin Internet
