Bobi Garland, Research Department

"Always looking for the grain of truth that tells a story," is how Bobi Garland describes the role of research at Western Costume. Supervising one of the great research libraries in the world, with over 15,000 volumes, she is attracted to costuming because, "what people are wearing tells a universal story, consistent from the beginning of time."

Bobi's love of knowledge is evident in her diverse background. From tiny Waukee, Iowa she migrated to the University of Massachusetts for a degree (cum laude) in literature and graduate school in Art Therapy and International Finance. Entering Hollywood as assistant to a studio head and later in film development, she has also been a costumer, shopper, set costumer and freelance researcher. Bobi likes to apply her research skills to creating assemblage art, which uses found materials to produce a 3-dimensional story. Johnny Carson, David Geffen and Steve Martin all possess custom-created examples of her art, and her art can be seen as an important part of the upcoming Warner Brothers film, "White Oleander."

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