Dr Philip A Sykas  

Philip Sykas worked as a textile conservator (1983-1994) and as a museum curator (1994-1998) before embarking on a full-time career in research. His doctoral thesis, completed in 2000, examined nineteenth-century calico printers' pattern books from the perspectives of design, technology and business. His research has since broadened to encompass the full history of textile printing in England, but still focuses on the interconnectivity between pattern design, textile technology and merchanting practice. New knowledge has been generated by the detailed analysis of visual evidence from manufacturers' pattern books. By incorporating this with contemporary written evidence, a new understanding is emerging of historical design practice and its response to developments in technology, as well as to the changing needs of a complex international trade.