Abstract This article takes a new look at Balenciaga: Ein Meister der Haute Couture, the exhibition held at the Museum Bellerive in Zurich from May 31 to August 16, 1970. By exploring the materials preserved in the museum’s archives (now at the Zurich University of the Arts), the study sets out to reconstruct this retrospective dedicated to Cristóbal Balenciaga and to consider its relevance to the

Abstract The Kunstmuseum Den Haag (hereafter KMDH) in the Netherlands holds one of four known La Perse Cristóbal Balenciaga jackets made in 1946. Previously owned by the opera singer Else Rijkens (1898–1953), the bolero-style jacket is richly hand-embroidered and constructed from white satin silk in the front and a contrasting black crepe silk in the back. The jacket has a matching toque, and a black

(2021). Biki: French Visions for Italian Fashion. Fashion Theory. Ahead of Print.

Abstract Textile converter Garigue (founded in 1947 in London, United Kingdom) and manufacturer Agnona (established in 1953 in Borgosesia, Italy) both became, shortly after their foundation, notable haute couture woolen suppliers. The House of Balenciaga played a crucial role in their success. This paper will analyze the history of these businesses and the marketing strategies they employed in order

Abstract Fashionable femininity is a complex discursive terrain. Multiple discourses compete to assert meanings for fashionable femininity and these discourses influence women’s experiences of their bodies. This article focuses upon oppressive and celebratory discourses as two powerful forces within designer fashion boutiques. From philosopher Michel Foucault, I consider how these discourses operate

Abstract The current pandemic is demanding a radical reconceptualization of fashion. In the context of an unprecedented economic decline, the collapse of physical fashion retailing and a fundamental interrogation of previous clothing consumption patterns, can the same be said of haute couture luxury fashion? Taking the current couture season’s promotional films as a starting point, this article discusses

From 1841 to 1844, the Auburn Prison in New York State, now the Auburn Correctional Facility, was the location of an early experiment in the manufacture of sewing silk, a type of thread used in garment production. Incarcerated men worked in throwing mills to transform cocoons into sewing silk; they reeled, combed, and dyed silk filaments, added twist, and wound the thread onto bobbins. The Auburn Prison

Abstract Kat von D (KvD), a social media influencer, uses her tattooed body, artwork, make-up brand, and narrative via YouTube to convey her lived experiences as a tattooed cis-gendered woman. KvD’s YouTube platform provides valuable data to explore the phenomenon of using social media for self-presentation and online social networking among the group of heavily tattooed women. Informed by Écriture

(2021). Editorial. Fashion Practice: Vol. 13, Fashion and Aging, pp. 1-6.

Abstract Vital Involvement (VI) in older adulthood is a construct that underlies multiple aspects of elder well-being, engagement, activity, and psychosocial health. Designers’ term “active aging” fits well within this construct, and it offers a social-science and developmental scaffolding on which to “hang”/“pin” many elements of designing (e.g., clothing, accessories, objects, spaces, and social

Abstract Women in the United States are often subjected to unrealistic standards of ideal appearance. These ideals are even more extreme in the fashion industry. Because professional women who hold creative positions in the fashion industry are in the business of creating style and beauty, there is a high level of expectation toward them to maintain their dress and appearance at a not explicitly stated

Abstract This research investigated the experiences of women, average age of 72 years with active lifestyles and living in one locale in the USA. Experiences of these 54 women with desired appearances and dressing patterns were determined through a survey and selected follow-up interviews. Keeping an up-to-date appearance was important to these women, as was dressing in a coordinated manner and to

Abstract Older adults are at higher risk for fire-related injuries and deaths than younger people due to their impaired physical and sensory functions. However, current fire-safety products could not satisfy their requirements. The purpose of this study was to develop a novel fire-safety product to help older adults safely evacuate from fire. A multifunctional fire-retardant clothing item was developed

Abstract Functional clothing products for older individuals are plentiful in the consumer market, and they are developing rapidly. However, the evaluation methods used for these products are relatively subjective and lack reliability. In this study, we reviewed some objective and quantitative indicators for evaluating functional clothing products and proposed a new method for evaluating functional

Abstract Unlike previous generations, aging American women continue to be active and to purchase new clothing based upon their expressed needs and values. Based on the literature review and interviews of a cohort of women 50+ years, this group can be considered an underrepresented market in the fashion industry. Through the design of four ensembles, the design process is outlined: techniques, procedures

(2021). Book Review. Fashion Practice: Vol. 13, Fashion and Aging, pp. 185-188.

Abstract Setting out from the Simmelian premise that fashion is the site of tension between conformity and distinction, this essay enquires into the element of distinction heightened in minimalist luxury fashion. Minimalist luxury reveals the inherently divisive nature of fashion, putting distance between “us”—the nonchalant, productive, and moral—and “them”—the vulgar, useless, and amoral. Its seeming

Abstract This article offers the reader an encounter with crucial writings on the globalisation of luxury fashion. In so doing, it introduces an original conceptualisation of luxury fashion. The historical meaning of the globalisation of luxury fashion from Roman times up until the present period is examined. The globalisation of Gucci, the Italian luxury fashion brand specialising in leather goods

(2021). Patch Work, a Life Amongst Clothes. Fashion Theory. Ahead of Print.

(2021). Fashion Theology. Fashion Theory. Ahead of Print.

Abstract Women’s upper body changes with age are categorized and analyzed. The researchers validated shape-related measurement variables, extracted principal components, and classified the shapes of 423 women ages 40–69 using 3 D body scans from the CAESAR database. Shape and posture differences were quantified according to four age groups based on 47 measurements processed into 27 shape-related variables;

(2021). Letter from the Editor. Fashion Theory: Vol. 25, No. 3, pp. 307-309.

(2021). Seamlessness: Making and (Un)Knowing in Fashion Practice. Fashion Theory: Vol. 25, No. 3, pp. 447-450.

(2021). On the Uses and Abuses of Benjamin for Thinking about Fashion. Philipp Ekardt on “Benjamin on Fashion”. Fashion Theory. Ahead of Print.

Abstract This article examines life writing as a research method to uncover new insights about the interrelationships between beings and place including with fashion and clothing. In it, the practice of using oneself as a site of enquiry is presented as a route to ecological understanding where finite, direct experience builds towards rooted, embodied, plural and relational knowing about how we live

(2021). Clothed in Meaning: Literature, Labor, & Cotton in Nineteenth Century America. Fashion Theory. Ahead of Print.

(2021). Made It: The Women Who Revolutionized Fashion. Dress. Ahead of Print.

(2021). Letter From the Editor. Fashion Theory: Vol. 25, No. 2, pp. 153-155.

Abstract 3D printing technologies are among the new developments in fashion design. The Dutch designer Iris van Herpen is one of the forerunners of 3 D printing in fashion design. She is particularly known for her 3 D printed designs of “fractal folds”: designs of inimitable curves, bends, and loops. Morphing art, fashion and technology, she developed productive collaborations with scientists and artists

Abstract This paper seeks new solutions for greater inclusion of non-standard body types in the apparel industry. 3D body scanning, virtual design tools, and computerized 3D knitting are assessed on their ability to facilitate the mass production of inclusive apparel for persons with disabilities. Four research participants from the disabled community have worked with the author to co-design custom

Abstract This article proposes that a new generation of designers is needed within the UK fashion industry with a combined skill-set of designer-led innovation, a critical approach to new technology and an understanding of new engineering, digital and scientific paradigms. The training of a new type of fashion student/researcher/designer is focused necessarily towards one who is able to work in a transdicsiplinary

(2021). Reading Fashion in Art. Dress. Ahead of Print.

(2021). In Memoriam. Dress. Ahead of Print.

(2021). Dressed in Dreams: A Black Girl’s Love Letter to the Power of Fashion. Dress. Ahead of Print.

(2021). The Dangers of Fashion: Towards Ethical and Sustainable Solutions. Dress. Ahead of Print.

Iridescent, color-shifting beetle wing casings have been embroidered onto dress around the world for centuries. This paper explores a variation of the practice from its roots in Mughal-era India through its translocation and transformation by English dressmakers during the East India Company and colonial eras. This paper considers the first recorded English women to wear such garments, how and where

Abstract Alexander McQueen’s Fall 1995 show Highland Rape was a turning point in his career. The title of the show, in conjunction with the models’ appearance on the runway in ripped, revealing clothes, was undeniably provocative, and the controversy raised his profile considerably. Several reviewers criticized the show, labeling it “misogynistic.” McQueen consistently objected to this characterization

(2019). Editorial Introduction. Luxury: Vol. 6, No. 2, pp. 137-138.

(2019). Recycling Luxury: An Introduction. Luxury: Vol. 6, No. 2, pp. 139-143.

Abstract In 18th century Venice, a city renowned for its unparalleled opulence, judicious recycling and repurposing of luxury textiles, was, ironically, the norm. Archival documents routinely list elegant, but “worn out” items, as in the 1773 inventory of Marina Eirardi, where a number of broken and “useless” clothing items are mentioned, and where is carefully described what remains of a precious

Abstract ‘The Virtue of Auction Houses’ shows auction houses to be important centres of recycling using philosophical theory combined with first-hand experience. The notion of ‘waste’ is explored – luxury items lying unworn and unused. This has moral implications and negates our ability to understand these objects. The auction house gives voice to these pieces once again. But why should we take the

Abstract The study and contextualisation of one early twentieth-century fancy dress costume from The John Bright Collection, London, provides an opportunity to challenge the socialised assumption that fancy dress costume is a short-lived, skill-less and superficial spectacle. Like many examples of this sartorial form, the Good Luck dress examined here shares characteristics with clothing termed, with

Abstract Tapestry is a luxury item before being a work of art. By the very fact of its function, tapestry undergoes transformations since all time. We cut or add borders, we cut large format tapestry into several pieces, and then, we re-sew them, all of this acts to put them to the dimension of surfaces that the tapestry must cover. This presentation would like to dwell on a particular case of a "tinkered"

Abstract This article examines the Congo Fashion Week London (CFWL), a fashion catwalk produced and consumed by Congolese and other Black Africans in London. The paper addresses the various ways through which CFWL organizers, designers and performers act within the contemporary fashion industry. The process is defined as “double-bind”. It involves a multifaceted, often contradictory, positionality

Abstract This article presents an interdisciplinary approach to fashion theory, in support of those studies in the field of subcultures and alternative lifestyles. The thesis of this work is that fashion shows the lasting correlation between forms of consumption, relationship, communication processes, cultural practices, systems and structures of production. The social meanings of the “objects of culture”

(2020). Fashion in a Time of Crisis. Fashion Practice: Vol. 12, No. 3, pp. 327-330.

(2020). Human Body: A Wearable Product Designer’s Guide. Fashion Practice: Vol. 12, No. 3, pp. 440-443.

(2020). Welcome to Vol. 46, No. 2. Dress: Vol. 46, No. 2, pp. (i)-(ii).

(2020). The Costumes of Burlesque: 1866–2018. Dress: Vol. 46, No. 2, pp. 159-161.

(2020). Fashion, History, Museums Inventing the Display of Dress. Dress: Vol. 46, No. 2, pp. 163-165.

(2020). Hat: Origins, Language, Style. Dress: Vol. 46, No. 2, pp. 167-169.

(2020). Work! A Queer History of Modeling. Dress: Vol. 46, No. 2, pp. 171-173.

(2020). Fashion and Design Gallery. Dress: Vol. 46, No. 2, pp. 175-178.

(2020). Collecting Comme. Dress: Vol. 46, No. 2, pp. 179-182.

(2020). Costume Society of America Fellow 2020 Anne Bissonnette. Dress: Vol. 46, No. 2, pp. 183-184.

(2020). Costume Society of America Fellow 2020 Howard Vincent Kurtz. Dress: Vol. 46, No. 2, pp. 185-186.

(2020). Costume Society of America Fellow 2020 Jean Louise Parsons. Dress: Vol. 46, No. 2, pp. 187-188.

(2020). Costume Society of America Fellow 2020 Elaine L. Pedersen. Dress: Vol. 46, No. 2, pp. 189-190.

(2021). Tenant of Culture – ‘Eclogues (an Apology for Actors)’, Nicoletti, London Contemporary 30/09/2019–14/12/2019. Fashion Theory: Vol. 25, No. 3, pp. 439-445.

Abstract Dress, the Senses, and Public, Private, and Secret Selves focuses on the senses related to dressing the self, taking into account not only the visual aspects of dress, but the other four senses: touch, sound, scent, and taste. The article connects the senses of dress to the idea of dress for the public, private, and secret selves, providing cross-cultural examples, and concludes by relating