-What is the Fashion Resource Center (FRC)?-
Part of SAIC’s network of Special Collections, the FRC is a unique hybrid research center and hands on learning collection. It brings together print materials, objects, garments, accessories and film to provide an immersive research environment focused on topics related to fashion and garment construction.
-Exploring the Collection Off Campus-
FRC Book & Lookbook Collection
The Fashion Resource Center is home to a comprehensive collection of books and print materials exploring the intersection of fashion with diverse topics and disciplines such as art, performance, sociology, history, polistics, identity and gender. Our print collection also includes an extensive selection of designer lookbooks dating from the mid-’80s to the present. Although our print collection is non-circulating, you can request scans of books and other print materials by emailing FRC@saic.edu. Follow the directions below to search the collection off campus:
- Go to saic.edu/library
- Scroll down and select ‘Flaxman Catalog’
- In the search field, type the book title, author, designer, or subject
- A list of books related to your search in the Flaxman Library and the FRC will appear
- To narrow your search to the FRC, scroll down to the right column until you reach ‘Location’ and select ‘735 Sullivan: Fashion Resource Center'
Pro tip: Lock the location filter so that each new search you conduct only searches FRC items!
FRC Garment/Accessories Collection
The Fashion Resource Center Garment/Accessories Collection provides a catalog of the FRC’s garments and accessories, with descriptive data and multiple images of each item. The database is a work in progress, with new records being added on a consistent basis, to ultimately represent the full breadth of the FRC’s 2000+ collection. Follow the directions below to access the collection off campus:
- Go to saic.edu/library
- Select the Digital Collections tab on the left side menu
- Select 'Fashion Resource Center Garment Collection'
OR go directly to https://digitalcollections.saic.edu/frc
- The search is automatically set to the FRC Garment Collection, so do a keyword search and select the magnifying glass icon to get your results
- Note the filters on the left (date range, materials, etc.) that can help narrow your search results
- Clicking an object's title in the list of results will give you an extensive amount of information about just that object
- Each record includes helpful images which can be expanded in size using the options that appear if you hover over the image
**If there are more than one image, they appear on the right side navigation
- If you are interested in a specific aspect of this item (ie: stitching pattern, material, etc. ) you can select any hyperlinked term in that item's record to redo a search just for that keyword within all of the Digital Collections
-Remote Services: Research + Virtual Visits-
The FRC offers the following services to faculty and students remotely:
- A Fashion Resource Center orientation video.
- The FRC Instructional Video Archive (explore the collection with Fashion Department faculty & alumni).
- Research consultations and assistance with finding materials.
- Scans of books and print materials in the collection.
- Alternative online and digital resources for fashion-related topics. These can include articles, Youtube videos and images.
- Suggest additional online fashion related resources through the Library’s website, such as Berg Fashion Library, Vogue/Harper’s Bazaar/WWD Archives.
- Virtual classroom visits to provide an overview of the FRC and its resources.
-Who to Contact-
Any and all questions about the Fashion Resource Center, its digital collections, or its remote services can be directed to: FRC@saic.edu
-Additional Resources from Flaxman Library-
Please see the Fashion Research Guide to find ebooks, ejournals, articles, images, and streaming video relevant to Fashion. You can find links to specific ejournal archives like Vogue, Women's Wear Daily, and Harper's Weekly on this page of the research guide.
