Pioneers of the Material World, Westminster Menswear Archive supports landmark exhibition
- mensweararchive3
- Oct 8
- 2 min read
The Westminster Menswear Archive (WMA) has provided key loans to Pioneers of the Material World, opening 2 October 2025 at Towneley Hall, Burnley, as part of the British Textile Biennial.
Marking the 50th anniversary of the 1975 British Mount Everest Southwest Face expedition, the exhibition charts how Lancashire’s mills and makers shaped the global story of high-performance outdoor clothing — from Himalayan summits to football terraces and festival fields. Drawing on collections of military, industrial, design and historical garments, the WMA supports a narrative showing how survival garments have been continuously reinterpreted as tools of identity and belonging.
Loans from the Archive include a layered outerwear piece by Burberry from the 1920s, alongside garments by Vollebak, Aquascutum, Berghaus Ltd, Nigel Cabourn Ltd, Grenfell, Lidl — and additional pieces from Stone Island, C.P. Company, Umbro, Henri-Lloyd, and Peter Storm. Together these works map a century of innovation, from industrial manufacture to cultural expression and design experimentation.
These loans are complemented by a major new donation from Vollebak: a Mars Suit designed for space exploration. Constructed from five layers of aluminised Mylar with Teflon, Kevlar, and Nomex for heat resistance, and reinforced with ballistic nylon and Cordura, the suit is both durable and insulated. It includes a 3D-printed chest cap providing access to a built-in vomit bag, intended to manage space adaptation syndrome.
Professor Andrew Groves, Director of the Westminster Menswear Archive, said:
“This exhibition demonstrates how garments created to endure the harshest conditions on earth became part of everyday life and culture. The Archive’s role is to preserve these histories, from Everest expeditions to terrace style, while also documenting how designers such as Vollebak are imagining clothing for environments we haven’t yet reached.”
Exhibition details
2 October – 25 December 2025
Wed–Sun 12:00–16:30 (last entry 45 mins before closing)
Towneley Hall, Towneley Holmes, Burnley BB11 3RQ
More information: britishtextilebiennial.co.uk/events/pioneers-of-the-material-world
