Research Centre for Fashion, the Body and Material Cultures
/A few days ago, the Research Centre for Fashion, the Body and Material Cultures had its official launch. Opened by Central Saint Martins in conjunction with the London College of Fashion (where it is housed), the Centre draws from an array of scholars and practictioners around London and beyond through an exciting program of guest speakers and visiting artists. Speaking at the Centre’s opening was Harold Koda, curator at the Costume Institute and currently a visiting professor at Central Saint Martins. In their words, the aim of the Centre is: “Dedicated to the analysis of fashion, the body and material cultures, the Centre seeks to develop creative and theoretical work in these inter-related areas. The Centre brings together the University's internationally recognised researchers in historical and cultural studies and those working within fashion design and technology to explore the synergies and productive tensions that exist between theory and practice. “
Francesca
Fashion Projects #5 is devoted to fashion curation, examining the meteoritic rise in relevance of fashion exhibitions.
It features interviews with an eclectic assortment of leading practitioners from different corners of the world. The issue includes long Q&As with Harold Koda, the longtime, recently retired curator of the Met’s Costume Institute, as well as the Museum at FIT’s veteran leader Valerie Steele. It also features interviews with curators in Antwerp (the ModeMuseum’s Kaat Debo), Toronto (Royal Ontario Museum’s Alexandra Palmer) and Venice (Maria Luisa Frisa); academics studying the field (Hazel Clark, Annamari Vänskä, and Alistair O’Neill); and, giving an on-the-ground perspective, the Met’s head conservator, Sarah Scaturro. The issue’s cover stars Greer Lankton’s sculptural representation of legendary Vogue editor and Costume Institute doyenne Diana Vreeland, who continues to loom over the field years after her death.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Showmanship and History: An Interview with Harold Koda by Francesca Granata
Woman of Steele: An Interview with Valerie Steele by Lisa Santandrea
Exploring Fashion’s Openness: An Interview with Kaat Debo by Alex Esculapio
London, After a Fashion Curator: An Interview with Alistair O’Neill by Alexis Romano
Curation and Conservation: An Interview with Sarah Scaturro by Mae Colburn
Reflections on Fashion Curating
An Interview with Hazel Clark and Annamari Vänskä
Fashion in the Vast Museum: An Interview with Alexandra Palmer by Ingrid Mida
Restless Curating: An Interview with Maria Luisa Frisa by Marco Pecorari