Tradition preservation through fashion consumption: Contemporary clothes on Gaucho traditionalist culture in the South of Brazil

Abstract

ABSTRACT Fashion inspired by local culture references is our starting point for understanding how fashion, as a contemporary and dynamic dimension, can preserve the capacity of representing and maintaining local traditions. Through an interpretive approach, we look at the relationship between traditional clothing preservation and the creation of a contemporary fashion associated with the gaucho traditionalist culture in southern Brazil. The study counts on 22 in-depth interviews with consumers and producers of the traditional and contemporary gaucho fashion movement, as well as document analysis and netnographic data exploration on gaucho traditions. Results indicate that even facing the resistance from conservative groups that aim to keep clothing stable over time, fashion producers and consumers associated the contemporary gaucho clothes as a modern mechanism for tradition preservation. It allows the adjustment of tradition representation in line with changes in social roles, especially gender patterns. Findings reveal that contemporary gaucho fashion challenges the rigid conception of tradition, once it represents a democratic instrument able to supply a sense of belonging adjusted to contemporary time. Finally, we theorize about the ability of symbolic representations of a particular culture to be transferred to emerging fashion elements over time, without losing the bond with the local tradition.