Faculty Profile

Susan Taber Avila
Professor of Design

January 29, 2013 M.F.A. Textile Arts and Costume Design, UC DavisDiploma in Textile Art, Goldsmiths, University of LondonB.A. Design, UCLA

Expertise: surface design, textile art, textile design, fashion design, history of fashion.

Background

Susan Taber Avila is an artist and designer who uses textiles to enhance perception of contemporary culture. She focuses on repurposing waste from the garment industry into new textile structures and combines traditional hand crafts with technology. She has exhibited her fashion designs and textile art in Argentina, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Finland, Hong Kong, Lithuania, Mexico, Spain, Swaziland, Turkey, United Kingdom, and Ukraine as well as numerous exhibitions in the United States. Her creative work is included in several books and periodicals, and she has published articles in Fiberarts, Ornament, Surface Design Journal, and Textil Forum. From 1999 to 2010 she was the co-creator of the website, FiberScene.com. She was a Chutian and Sunshine Scholar at Wuhan Textile University in Wuhan, China 2009-2015 and a recipient of a 2010 Center for Cultural Innovation “Investing in Artists” Grant.

Publications and Work

Examples of recent work include:

Additional work can be seen at this website.

Awards

2014 Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Mentoring Undergraduate Research.

(530) 752-2859

Room 235, Cruess Hall

Preferred Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

stavila[remove-this-and-replace-with-at]ucdavis.edu

Photo Gallery

“FROM CONCEPT TO CREATION” Photo Gallery

February 13, 2023 Susan Taber Avila Cristina Gomez

Color, creativity and craftsmanship are the key elements in the footwear design by Chris Francis. The UC Davis Design Museum installation “From Concept to Creation: Inspired Shoe Design by Chris Francis” celebrates the work of this visionary artisan. The exhibition showcases his work which combines global shoemaking traditions and techniques, with references to the built environment such as industrial design and brutalist architecture as well as 20th-century art movements and punk rock.

View more photos

Event

From Concept to Creation: Inspired Shoe Design by Chris Francis
January 23 – April 23, 2023

January 23, 2023 Susan Taber Avila Cristina Gomez

The UC Davis Design Museum takes a bold step with the exhibition “From Concept to Creation: Inspired Shoe Design by Chris Francis,” which showcases the colorful and imaginative footwear created by the Los Angeles-based shoe designer.

General information

SUSAN TABER AVILA’S FASHION IN WORLD OF WEARABLE ART COMPETITION

October 4, 2018 Susan Taber Avila

Susan Taber Avila, professor of Design, recently participated in the World of Wearable Art competition, held in Wellington, New Zealand. Her “In Bloom” creation was a finalist in the awards competition and was included in all of the 2018 30th anniversary performances for this annual event.

Announcement

Design Professor Contributes to Fiber Art Book Series

January 16, 2018 Susan Taber Avila

Susan Taber Avila, professor of design, has made invaluable contributions to a new book series on fiber art. “Artistry in Fiber” by Anna Lee and E. Ashley Rooney is a three-book series which includes a volume titled “Wearable Art” featuring a foreward by Avila. In addition, examples of Avila’s work appear in all three books.

Exhibition

The Image of Fashion: A Photographer’s Legacy
January 4 – February 4, 2016

July 30, 2015 Susan Taber Avila Jo Ann C. Stabb

Curated by Susan T. Avila and Jo Ann C. Stabb

Paul W. Hollingshead (1896–1974) studied at the New York Institute of Photography in 1922 and worked for Edward Steichen taking high fashion photos for Vogue and Vanity Fair magazines. In 1928, he returned to California and settled in Woodland in 1932. Upon his death he left an archive of photos to his sons, Bill and Edward Hollingshead, that document changes covering five decades. Experimenting with lighting, background, props, and poses, the photographs capture evolving styles in clothing and fashion as well as the sitter’s preferences from dashing movie star glamor shots to warm, friendly, family photos. Fashions and accessories from the UC Davis Design Collection will be paired with these period photographs, bringing them to life with tangible artifacts.

More about "The Image of Fashion"

Lecture

Surface And Structure: The Stitches Of Susan Taber Avila
January Lecture at de Young Museum

January 17, 2015 - 10:00 am - 12:00 pm Susan Taber Avila

Susan Taber Avila will present a lecture on January 17 at the de Young Museum. The Textile Arts Council notes that this talk “provides a glimpse into her life in stitches, covering product and process, content, and context.”

The lecture will be held on January 17, 2015, at 10 a.m. in the Koret Auditorium, at the de Young Museum in San Francisco. Admission is free to TAC members, $10 for non-members, and $5 for FAMSF (Museum) members and students with I.D.

News

Susan Avila honored with Chancellor’s Award
June 17, 2014

June 17, 2014 Susan Taber Avila

Excellence in Mentoring Undergraduate Research

Susan Avila, Professor of Design, is an artist and designer who uses textiles to enhance perception of contemporary culture. While Avila has exhibited her work around the globe, on campus she may be best known as the faculty advisor for the annual Picnic Day Fashion Show.

Susan Taber Avila Professor of Design

Background

Publications and Work

Awards

Excellence in Mentoring Undergraduate Research

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Susan Taber Avila
Professor of Design