Adele Zhang, senior continuing lecturer and design collection curator and manager, is the co-author of a new bilingual book, “Encountering the Global Textile Motifs” (China Textile Press Co., Ltd, 2024). Written with Kunyuan Li, a Ph.D in design studies from Jiangnan University, China, the book illustrates a colorful survey of ethno-textile designs from the UC Davis Jo Ann C. Stabb Design Collection and Han Costume Collection by Jiangnan University.

Focusing on textile patterns and surface ornaments, this book examines human creativities through the lens of artisanship from their techniques to the deep layers of cultural meanings that touch many aspects of our lives. Structured into three chapters—Weaving, Printing & Dyeing, and Embroidery and Applique, the topics covered in this book thoroughly probe the organic approaches to textile creation enabled by natural resources and intellectual curiosity. More than 150 high-quality images labeled in both Chinese and English better communicate to readers to understand how textile motifs have become such a vibrant feature of the global interconnections among disparate cultures while celebrating their enduring appeal and forceful impact in today’s fashion world.