Western Fashion Research Articles

Exploring the Meaning of Saudi Women's Traditional Dress Among a Shifting Saudi Cultural Context

Saudi Women's traditional dress had been worn for centuries but has been discarded in favor of Western fashion and regarded as stigmatized since the 2010s. However, various events have occurred over the last four years that have contributed to the possible destigmatization of Saudi women's traditional dress. We explore the shifting meaning of Saudi women's traditional dress in the contemporary Saudi context. We interviewed 14 Saudi women; data were analyzed using constant comparison processes, and four themes emerged: (a) traditional dress as a multifaceted and dynamic symbol in contemporary Saudi culture, (b) motives for wearing Saudi traditional dress in the shifting cultural context, (c) perceptions about the role of micro- and macro-level factors in altering the meanings of and behaviors toward Saudi traditional dress, and (d) asserting agency in constructing and enacting meanings and practices related to traditional dress. Participants’ choices about traditional dress reflected both macro and micro forces.

Against abstract universalisms in fashion theory: For a dialogical process of interpretation and translation

Criticism on the Eurocentric character of the concept of fashion has been raised already for almost four decades within fashion studies. Yet, the growing entanglement with globalization studies and postcolonial and decolonial theories has accelerated an epistemological turn within fashion studies. The epistemological turn not only fostered new research on the empirical level, it also challenged the theoretical framework of the discipline. Even the concept of fashion itself, entrenched as it is in modernization theories, has gradually come under attack. The concept of fashion has been held accountable for defining only ‘modern’ western fashion as its research object, while side-lining, even erasing, other ‘traditional’ sartorial systems. In order to redress the Eurocentric character of fashion theory and the exclusionary effects it engenders, fashion has been redefined as a ‘universalism’. Although this view became quite mainstream, in its turn it also became gradually criticized. It has been rightly argued that redefining fashion as a universalism is only another way of re-inscribing fashion scholarship in the hegemonic western ‘modern/colonial’ way of knowledge production. Studying sartorial practices positioned outside the western capitalist fashion system through the lens of fashion obscures an understanding of their own specific characteristics. In this article, I will turn more specifically towards the question of which methodologies we can mobilize if we, scholars versed in western modern knowledges and modern knowledge production, are committed to a multiplicity of sartorial worlds in as well as outside ‘the West’. The article proposes a hermeneutic–dialogical method of interpretation and translation as an epistemological as well as an ethical tool towards a more adequate understanding of ‘other’ ways of wearing, making, feeling, thinking of and living through clothes. Finally, this article offers a tentative analysis that shows what this dialogical approach might entail.

Performing fashion/fashioning performance: Kansai Yamamoto, David Bowie and Ziggy Stardust

Kansai Yamamoto (Japan 1944–2020) was one of the first Japanese designers to break into European and American fashion markets. Following his first London showing in 1971, Kansai (as he was known) worked with David Bowie (England 1947–United States 2016) to create a wardrobe for the performer’s 1973 tour, Aladdin Sane. This article explores the pivotal role the collaboration between Kansai and Bowie played in the construction of the performative persona Ziggy Stardust. Focusing on Kansai’s designs and his approach to the western fashion industry – where he employed a similar strategy of deliberate ‘othering’ – I will demonstrate how his intimate partnership with Bowie, already personally drawn to Eastern aesthetics, was pivotal in visualizing the concept of ‘alien’ (both as ‘foreign’ and ‘from out of space’). Kansai’s work – synonymous with bold colour, flamboyant prints and dramatic silhouettes – is heavily influenced by Japanese popular art. His performative involvement in his own runway shows draws distinctive parallels with Japanese theatre. In particular, this article examines the critical influences of Japanese theatre arts, particularly kabuki traditions, and of yakusha-e (ukiyo-e-style actor prints) on Kansai’s oeuvre, and how the designer transformed the previous styling of Bowie’s androgynous Messiah-like character into one of the most internationally acclaimed glam rock icons.

Reclaiming Agency through Fashion: Postcolonial Identities and Colonial Legacies in V.S. Naipaul's A Bend in the River

Fashion has been an important part of human cultures since the dawn of civilization. It covers a wide range of practices related to clothing, style, personal ornaments to domains like furniture, interior design, and food preferences. Therefore, it is deeply influenced by cultural, social, economic, and political factors. Fashion is a powerful tool for representing identity, especially in cultures impacted by colonialism and imperialism. It is through fashion choices that individuals express their cultural identity, challenge norms imposed by others, and resist the erasure of their heritage. It becomes a tool for empowerment and self-representation, allowing marginal communities to reclaim agency over their own narratives. While colonialism may have ended, the legacy of colonialism has left lasting impacts on economies, social structures, and cultural perceptions. The Western nations continue actively participating in imperial activities to protect their wealth and power by exploiting other countries economically. The internalisation of colonial set of values has also influenced the perception of fashion among the people from once colonised countries whose cultural values are deemed as being uncivilized as “superior”, “civilized” and “rational” coloniser’s western fashion trends permeate the local market. Fashion is used as a means of signifying power, class, and status with European modes of dress being seen as a symbol of sophistication and modernity. Drawing upon the broader theorerical framework of postcolonialism, this paper critically analyses V.S. Naipaul’s seminal work A Bend in the River to demonstrate how fashion choices creates identities to continue colonial legacies.

Analysis of the Formation of Western Fashion Style in the 1980s

Clothing is an important factor that affects the beauty of women's form, and it is also an external manifestation of women's thinking. The popular women's clothing in the West in the 1980s had a very unique and significant style, to the extent that the aesthetic formed by women during this period has continued to the present day. Nowadays, many fashion designers often refer to the fashion elements of the time when creating. The formation of style is inseparable from the historical background. This study analyses the factors that influenced the style of women's clothing in the 1980s by consulting literature, websites, and books. That was an era when women began to gradually enter the workplace. Influenced by the background of this era, women's clothing broke away from the limitation of showcasing women's physical appearance and more developed towards a neutral and capable style. At the same time, due to the vigorous development of the economy, extravagance and exaggeration became the mainstream at that time. All of these have formed the unique trend of women's clothing in the 1980s. The significance of this study is to analyze the causes of Western women's clothing styles in the 1980s in detail, in order to gain a more comprehensive and detailed understanding of the fashion history of that period.

Reclaiming tradition, fashioning citizenship: Ankara in contemporary Brazilian Afrocentric fashion

This article explores the ways in which fashion consumption shaped the understandings of citizenship and belonging in colonial and postcolonial Nigeria and Brazil. It focuses on ankara, a printed textile that was brought to West Africa by European merchants and Christian missionaries. The article examines how African materials, such as ankara, challenged modern beauty standards and have been used to control people during colonization. In Nigeria, ankara became a symbol of the new Christian citizen, while in contemporary Brazil, it was used to challenge western fashion and celebrate African heritage. The article uses visual art, literature and interviews with fashion designers in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Salvador to show how ankara has become a part of Afrocentric Brazilian fashion. Overall, the study of ankara shows how fashion has been used as a tool of oppression and how its oppressive history is in the process of changing, thanks to modern Afro-Brazilian fashion designers.

Evolution of Indonesian Islamic Intellectual Fashion in the Early 20th Century: A Visual Narrative Analysis

Throughout Indonesia's history, clothing has served multiple purposes, representing not only social status but also an individual's position in society. From the eras of Hindu-Buddhist influence to the advent of Islam and into the modern era, Indonesian attire has been a canvas colored by evolving customs and cultural shifts. As the 20th century began, a dynamic transformation in clothing styles emerged, spurred by the rise of Indonesian intellectuals in response to Dutch ethical policies. This change was evident among Indonesian Islamic intellectuals as well, where traditional robes and sarongs, once emblematic of Muslim attire, lost their primary significance. This study aims to delve into the fashion choices of Indonesian Islamic intellectuals during the early 20th century. Employing a historical research method comprising four stages—heuristics, criticism, interpretation, and historiography—the research seeks to uncover the influence of Western fashion on these intellectuals' clothing choices. The findings of this study illuminate how Western fashion elements such as suits, ties, hats, and shirts became commonplace among Indonesian Islamic intellectuals during this transformative period.

Indonesian Islamic Intellectual Fashion Style in The Early 20th Century: Photo Narrative Analysis

The development of clothing began to have a variety of functions ranging from the symbol of social status to the symbol of a person's position. Indonesia stretches from the Hindhu-Buddhist, Islam to the modern era Indonesia clothing is very dispersed and coloured by customs and culture that developed in its time. Entering the beginning of the 20th century, with the emergence of Indonesian Intellectuals as a result of the Dutch ethical politics fashion style of Indonesian to be varied. Among Indonesian Islamic Intellectuals, a similar change occurred. Robes or sarongs are often synonymous with the characteristics of a Muslim's clothes are no longer a major symbol. The purpose of this study is to know Indonesian Islamic Intellectuals' clothing style in the early 20th century. The method used is a historical research method consisting of 4 stages, namely heuristics, criticism, interpretation, and historiography. The study's results found that Western fashion styles influenced the fashion styles of Indonesian Islamic Intellectuals in the early 20th century. Suits, ties, hats and shirts are the common Western clothes these people wear.

Roles of Japanese scripts in Western fashion: Fusion and New Orientalism

This paper examines the use of Japanese scripts on fashion items. The use of English on fashion items (e.g. t-shirts) has been observed across the globe and examined in the field of sociolinguistics. In recent years, fashion brands such as Gucci, Coach, Adidas, and Nike have printed Japanese scripts on their clothes alongside their original brand names. A UK fashion brand, Superdry, employ Japanese in their brand name and logos. However, the use of languages other than English has not yet been analysed in the fields of sociolinguistics or fashion. The adoption of different cultural norms is often discussed as a form of cultural appropriation. This paper challenges that view by comparing the use of English and Japanese as well as by discussing possible explanations and the roles of Japanese scripts in fashion. It emerges that Japanese scripts are used due to the symbolic, cultural, and linguistic capital that they hold, as well as with a view to enabling brands to express uniqueness. The paper argues that printing Japanese scripts on fashion items is not a simple representation of Japonisme, but rather a form of cultural and linguistic appreciation. It also asserts that the New Orientalism that has been observed in the adaptation of Japanese scripts to fashion has no connotation of otherness. Instead, it represents an active acceptance of the East and the generation of new cultures. Transcultural flows are observed in the field of fashion in the era of globalisation. This paper presents a new perspective on studies on Orientalism and the use of languages and scripts.

Alexander McQueen looking at the East – Influence of Japanese kimono on the West and Orientalist elements in McQueen’s (Spring/Summer 2001) “Voss” collectio

Since the beginning of the trade between Japan and the West in 1853, the kimono and other oriental garments flooded the Western market. Designers started incorporating the kimono and its elements into their design, therefore, bringing newness to the kind of static decade of Western fashion. There were two different approaches fashion designers used toward exotic garments: some would see just costumes and others would try to preserve the original work. This paper intends to analyze the work of the British designer Alexander McQueen who belongs to the second group, in other words, designers who created modern garments while still trying to keep the traditional aspects of the culture from which they borrowed. An example of the second approach would be McQueen’s (Spring/Summer 2001) “Voss” collection with which he also challenged the concept of beauty. Nature plays an integral part in this collection, but also worth mentioning are the elements of the East, especially Japan. McQueen was one of these designers who did borrow the elements of the countries of the Orient while also preserving the original craftsmanship. When it comes to Japan, in particular, McQueen used Japanese screens with embroidered panels for the creation of the dress. Interestingly, the original Japanese design and craftsmanship were preserved but transformed into something nostalgic and also new.

A Comparision Between Whether and How Western Fashion Represents the Identity of Upper-Class Women in Shanghai and Chinese Immigrant Women in the United States during the 1920s

During the 1920s, the city of Shanghai became a hub of Western influence, as more foreigners and Chinese individuals with overseas degrees brought new ideas to the port city. The growing upper-class in Shanghai increasingly had access to purchase Western products, specifically Western fashion on Nanjing Road. Meanwhile, Chinese immigrants living in the United States during this decade experienced varying degrees of Western influence in their everyday lives and how they dressed. The topic of this paper addresses an understudied comparison, utilizing fashion as an angle to examine the identities of upper-class women in Shanghai and Chinese immigrant women in the United States during the 1920s. This paper observes primary sources including photographs and a newspaper as a method to address the research topic. This paper argues that during the 1920s, most second-generation Chinese immigrant women adopted Western fashion to assimilate into American culture. However, the first-generation Chinese immigrant women mostly maintained their Chinese culture despite being in a new environment. On the other hand, in Shanghai, Western fashion became popular among upper-class women during the 1920s as it reflected their social and economic power; their identity became increasingly linked to progressive Western womens ideals. Ultimately, this papers assertion contributes to shaping a larger perspective explaining how the different environments of Shanghai and the United States caused the upper-class women in Shanghai and Chinese immigrant women in the United States to have disparate values in regard to Western fashion.

플러스 사이즈 모델의 지각된 사이즈가 신체 만족에 미치는 영향 : 지각된 유사성과 신체 사이즈 변화 가능성에 대한 암묵적 신념의 조절된 매개 효과

The use of size-inclusive advertising in Western fashion markets has been well-received by consumers. However, the effect of such advertising on South Korean consumers has yet to be fully understood. To address this gap, we investigated the effect of inclusive advertising using plus-size models in the South Korean fashion market. Specifically, we examined the influence of perceived size of a plus-size model and perceived similarity to a plus-size model on body satisfaction, considering the moderated mediation effect of implicit belief about the malleability of body sizes. Data were collected through an online survey administered to 307 South Korean women in their 20s and 30s and analyzed using the SPSS Process Macro. Our findings show that perceived size of a plus-size model had a negative impact on body satisfaction. Furthermore, perceived similarity to a plus-size model mediated this causal relationship. We also discovered that the mediated relationship was moderated by implicit belief about the malleability of body sizes. This study highlights that, unlike Western consumers, South Korean consumers still respond unfavorably to size-inclusive fashion advertising featuring plus-size models. Therefore, differentiated advertising strategies are necessary for this market.

Refashioning repair culture through the circle of value creation: A case study of the Japanese brand KUON

During the past ten years or more, sustainable fashion and slow lifestyle has received a growing amount of attention from design scholars, creative practitioners and fashion brands. In addition to new technologies of material development, the recent incorporation of repair-inspired designs into current fashion practice is also notable. Among the origins of global repair traditions, the Japanese patchwork boro receives a shared interest from a global creative network of fashion designers, textile collectors and artisans in their exploration of sustainable materials and reinvention of ancient craftsmanship. Born from humbleness, boro signifies a class of Japanese textiles that have been extensively mended and patched together by people who could not get or afford proper clothes. The recent resurrection of boro as a style and an eco-friendly fashion statement follows the trend for sustainable design, and also benefits from the recognition of Japanese aesthetics in western fashion and design industries. By investigating the boro-influenced patchwork menswear brand KUON from Japan, this case study acknowledges and exemplifies the historical and contemporary ideological alignment of sustainable fashion with Japanese repair culture, aesthetics and material interpretations. This research considers boro as an alternative solution to the current development of new material technologies, and the discussion of boro offers future possibilities to reimagine the meanings and representations of this traditional repair craft which may inspire creative practitioners to participate and contribute to sustainable fashion design.

English

As one of the most famous works of Marlowe’s plays, Tamburlaine the Great implied the theme of distorting the orient images, particularly Muslims. The orientalist representation of Muslims in the Elizabethan stage was deliberately oriented against Islam. However, more than 50 literary works targeted Islam during the Elizabethan era. Tamburlaine the Great is considered an oriental play that targeted Islam horribly in a Western fashion to depict Islam as being based on cruel, offensive, and barbarian deeds. These horrible images were raised in western literary works after the Crusades as Part of the intellectual invasion; consequently, this research paper attempts to reveal the Greek depiction of Muslims in Tamburlaine the Great based on orientalism theory by Said. The authors reveal how Marlowe used his knowledge of Greek history to demonize the Muslim army and Islamic culture and depict them similarly to Greek myths and how his early skepticism and fallacies contributed to constructing a common ground for hostile ideologies targeting Islam, such as monstrosity and demonization of the other. Marlowe portrayed the Muslim army metaphorically as monsters such as Typhon and Hydra. He chose the negative side of the Greek myths to represent it as Part of Islam. The Islamic culture was also negatively represented as an imitation of Greek history. Moreover, Marlowe reinforced the Greek history, dictions, and beliefs on behalf of the Islamic culture so that Islamic culture was represented with ambiguity and falsifications to be inferior while the Western one was superior.   Key words: Tamburlaine the Great, orientalism, Muslim, depiction, Greek monster.

Jeans and their Fashionable Meanings: Revisiting Beverly Gordon's Cultural Conceptual Framework

Jeans and their Fashionable Meanings: Revisiting Beverly Gordon's Cultural Conceptual Framework

МОДЕРНОСТЬ, ТЕМПОРАЛЬНОСТЬ И СОВЕТСКАЯ МОДА В ЛЕНИНГРАДЕ В 1950–1960-Е ГОДЫ

The article examines the process of clothing design at the Soviet official fashion institution, the Leningrad Fashion House, in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Based on the archival materials and visual sources, the research aims at exploring Soviet fashion as a manifestation of modernity. One of the key ideological and political agendas of the state leaders of that period was the aim to overcome backwardness. However, compared to Western fashion design, Soviet clothing always looked “frozen in time”. The article investigates the specifics of temporality of Soviet fashion. The analysis of unique sources exhibits that Soviet fashion had several temporal orders. The first temporal order was formed due to the different speeds of design and production. Class, social and cultural inequalities influenced the formation of various fashions in the Soviet Union, which could retard from each other. Soviet designers did not set themselves the goal of creating a completely alternative variant of modern fashion. Understanding of modernity was shaped by the transnational entanglements of ideas and practices, as Western fashion remained the major reference point for what it meant to be modern. The key theoretical result of the article is that, being in different temporalities, Soviet fashion indicated different dimensions of modernity.

Beyond Needle and Thread

Beyond Needle and Thread

From Secret Fashion Shoots to the #100projectors

From Secret Fashion Shoots to the #100projectors

Performing postcolonial identity: The spectacle of Lagos Fashion Week

Throughout the fashion year in Lagos, events take place across the city. The pre-eminent event is Lagos Fashion Week (LFW). A key event in the fashion calendar on the African continent, this is where designers are consecrated in the fashion field, and where social and economic capital is delineated. This article describes the strategies employed by the designers and attendees to realize and self-represent their creations. To some degree, LFW is more accessible than the dominant western fashion weeks (New York, etc.) and offers the potential for actors to destabilize that system and its inherited colonial ideologies. LFW provides a platform for self-representation and for legitimizing alternative identities, some of which challenge an embedded patriarchy. A vibrant competitive display of street fashion, covered by international journalists and photographers, offers further possibilities for the articulation of contemporary identities, which challenge the legacies of stereotypical colonial representations of African dress. At the same time, certain western conventions are reproduced, such as the celebration and legitimization of individual designers over the hidden labour of artisans. The article suggests that LFW might serve to facilitate decolonial processes once designers employ equitable fashion practices and represent the voices of the artisans.

보그 런웨이에 나타난 차이니즈 포복 스타일

This study aims to support design inspired by Asian traditional costumes and broaden the scope of design thinking in the future through examination of the method of expression and characteristics of Chinese robe styles appearing in the Vogue runway collections. To the this, the study reviews how the Chinese traditional robe design has changed through history. First, this study found that the length, style of fastening, and collar and sleeve style have differed and transformed from the period of Pre-Qin to the Republic of China. Colors used for robes included those based on the thoughts of the five elements and various traditional Chinese patterns. Second, the study analyzed Chinese robe styles on the Vogue runway over the last five years. Styles of robe from all the periods of history analyzed in part one appeared in the collections, but the method of expression related to qipao was relatively dominant. In terms of color, combinations were based on trends relating to designers or characteristics of brands rather than reproduction of original colors or combinations of colors in traditional, historical Chinese robes. Patterns used were either animals such as dragons or phoenix or traditional geometric designs. A comprehensive review of the sample showed, among others, characteristics such as the convergence of various robe shapes and western fashion materials according to historic changes, the application of robes to fashion style, design inspired by the decorative expression of robe, and a combination of qipao-shaped futuristic fashion trend.