FASHION & POWER T/Th 9:00-10:30 Professor Rachel K. Ward: rachelkward@gmail.com, 06.78.68.67.

11 A history of dress would be a history of minds; for dress expresses a moral idea; it symbolizes the intellect and disposition of a nation, Oscar Wilde. This course examines fashion as a form of communication and culture. Through cultural and media studies theory, we will examine how fashion makes meaning, and how it has been valued through history, popular culture and media institutions, focusing on the relationship between fashion, visual self-presentation, and power. The course will situate fashion both in terms of its production and consumption, addressing its role in relation to identity and body politics (gender, race, sexuality, class), art and status, nationhood and the global economy, celebrity and Hollywood culture, youth cultures and subversive practices. COURSE OBJECTVIES An analysis of mass culture, the culture industry, and the production of culture An understanding of the relationship of modernity to style and visuality An understanding of the economic, social, and cultural aspects of fashion An analysis of fashion as a key site of cultural meaning An analysis of the politics of labor that undergirds the fashion industry and the production of clothing An examination of the visual codes of fashion and fashion photography, with the tools to understand how fashion photography creates meaning An analysis of the role fashion and style plan in visual self-presentation and concepts of identity and the self An analysis of the role of bricolage and cultural practices that change the meaning of fashion A critical analysis of celebrity culture and how it functions MATERIALS -Malcolm Barnard. Fashion Theory: A Reader. New York: Routledge, 2008. -Supplementary articles in course pack (please note most but not all available through NYU library online) EVALUATION Grading scale 100-90% A, 89-80% B, 79-70% C, 69-60% D, 59-0% F All assignments must be printed and may not be submitted by email. Any late assignment must be signed and dated and loses 5% of total grade per day. Dedication 15% Please read all assigned materials before class and participate in class discussion. You will be required to bring in materials and go to excursions. This class will also have a shared blog at www.tbd.blogspot.com. Consistent lateness and unexcused absences risks this portion of the grade. Our class is intended for learning so please contribute to an atmosphere of respect. No laptops, texting, mobile phones, or eating. Reading response & discussion leadership 10% For one class session, you will read the assignments and help lead class discussion. You must compose a printed reading response in advance, submitted to me by email before class. You may print copies for the class and they will be posted as shared notes on the blog after class. MARCH 9, Research topic and bibliography 10% Your topic will be a specific power code communicated by clothing, image and/or brand, preferably European. The bibliography is a minimum 15 sources/2 pages of relevant materials following MLA style. MARCH 16, Mid term 15% Short answer and essays concerning the reading, APRIL 15, Research paper 20% Based on your topic of a fashion message and opposing message. Double spaced, maximum 12 point font (Arial, Helvetica, Times New Roman etc) 7-9 pages, plus works cited and images MAY 4-6, Research presentation 10% A 20 minute class presentation of your research findings using visual resource MAY 13 / Final 20% Final cumulative essay, open note

FASHION & POWER SCHEDULE: *Asterisk items are suggested as time allows. WEEK 1: FEB 2 FEB 4

INTRODUCTION WHAT IS FASHION? BARNARD: 11. John Flugel, Protection ARTICLE: Georg Simmel, Fashion, The American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 62, No. 6 (May, 1957), pp. 541- 558.

WEEK 2: FEB 16

ARISTOCRATIC POWER BARNARD: 5. Ann Rosalind Jones and Peter Stallybrass, Renaissance Clothing and the Materials of Memory ARTICLE: Jennifer M. Jones, Repackaging Rousseau: Femininity and Fashion in Old Regime France, from French Historical Studies, Vol. 18, No. 4 (Autumn, 1994), pp. 945-953 & pp. 959-963. *The Essence of Style: How the French invented High Fashion http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/18/arts/18iht-booktue.html MODERN FRENCH POWER th ARTICLE: Walter Benjamin, Paris, Capital of the 19 Century, MIT, pp. 165-172 BARNARD: 35. Ulrich Lehamn, Benjamin and the Revolution of Fashion in Modernity *BARNARD: 6. Gilles Lipovetsky, A Century of Fashion

FEB 18

WEEK 3: FEB 23

FASHION AS LAW BARNARD: 4. Agnes Brooks Young, Fashion Has Its Laws ARTICLE: Excerpts from Mallarms La Derniere Mode as re-printed in P.N. Furbank and A. M. Cain. Mallarm on Fashion: A Translation of the Fashion Magazine La Derniere Mode. New York: Berg. 2004. THE FASHION WORLD BARNARD: 32. Elizabeth Wilson, Adorned in Dreams ARTICLE: David Gilbert, Urban Outfitting (Fashion Cities), Fashion Cultures *ONLINE: Amanda Fortini, How the Runway Took Off: A Brief History of the Fashion Show, Slate, http://www.slate.com/id/2173464/ *Research topics discussed at end of class

FEB 25

WEEK 4: MAR 2

POWER DESIGNERS Initial topic idea due, please have it on paper to turn in ARTICLE: Lourdes Font, LAllure de Chanel, Fashion Theory, pp. 301-314. ARTICLE: Yuniya Kawamura, The Japanese Revolution in Paris Fashion, Fashion Theory pp. 195-223. *ONLINE: Galliano, Still the Master Showman http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/10/fashion/10FASHION.html?scp=5&sq=john+galliano&st =nyt FRIDAY EXCURSION Please meet at location at 1:00pm Musee Les Art Decoratifs, Contemporary Fashion:1971-2008 *Reminder final topic and bibliography due next class + sample brand

MAR 4

FASHION & POWER WEEK 5: MAR 9

BRAND POWER Final Topic & Bibliography Due / Please bring any brand BARNARD: 43. Tamsin Blanchard Fashion & Graphics BANARD: 37. Fashion, or the Enchanting Spectacle of the Code, Jean Baudrillard BRAND POWER ARTICLE: Asok Som, LVMH: Personal touch that built an empire of style and luxury ARTICLE: Christopher M. Moore and Grete Birtwistle, The Burberry Business Model: Creating an International Luxury Fashion Brand, Journal of Retail & Distribution Mgmt

MAR 11

WEEK 6: MAR 16 MAR 18 EXAM REVIEW MID TERM EXAM

WEEK 7: MAR 23

THE POWER OF APPEARANCES Please bring any fashion photo BARNARD: 40. Roland Barthes, Fashion Photography BARNARD: 41. Rosetta Brooks, The Double-Page Spread: Helmut Newton, Guy Bourdin and Deborah Turbeville *ONLINE: Extreme Beauty in Vogue: 75 Years of Photography (22 photos) http://www.style.com/vogue/feature/2009_March_Extreme_Beauty/?mbid=rss_feature THE POWER OF APPEARANCES BARNARD: 42. Doing Fashion Photographs Erica Lennard ARTICLE: Elliott Smeldley, Escaping to Reality: Fashion photography in the 1990s, Fashion Cultures, 2000: 143-156.

MAR 25

WEEK 8: MAR 30

SEXUAL POWER ARTICLE: Barnard, Reproduction, pp. 116-125. ARTICLE: Diane Crane, Gender & Hegemony in Fashion Magazines, The Sociological Quarterly, pp. 541-549. *ARTICLE: Reka Buckley and Stephen Gundle, Flash Trash: Gianni Versace and the theory and practice of glamour, Fashion Cultures THE MODEL & STAR POWER ARTCLE: Patricia Beltran, Fashion Models as Ideal Embodiments of Normative Identity ARTICLE: Brian Morean, Celebrities, Culture & Name Economy *ARTICLE: Andy Warhol, Fame, The Philosophy of Andy Warhol, pp. 73-86.

APR 2

WEEK 9: APR 6

PURCHASE POWER ARTICLE: Theodor Adorno. Magic Flute from Minima Moralia, pp. 224-5. BARNARD: 21. Emil Wilbekin, Hip Hop and Fashion Dress for Excess and Success ARTICLE: Catrin Joergens, Ethical fashion: Myth or future trend?, Journal of Fashion Marketing & Mgmt, pp. 360-369. *FRIDAY EXCURSION Please meet at the main building at 1:00pm Espace Culturel Louis Vuitton, Behind the Scenes

APR 8

FASHION & POWER WEEK 10: APR 13

SUBCULTURAL POWER BARNARD: 23. Dick Hebdige, Style ARTICLE: Sophie Woodward, The Myth of Street Style, Fashion Theory, pp. 83-102 *ARTICLE: Lisa Birnbach, excerpts from The Official Preppy Handbook, 1980 RESISTANCE / PAPER DUE Because your paper is due, you will be assigned to read only ONE of the following: BARNARD: 7. Fred Davis, Antifashion: The Vicissitudes of Negation BARNARD: 39. Alison Gill, Deconstruction Fashion: The Making of Unfinished, Decomposing and Re-Assembled Clothes ARTICLE: Brian Hilton, Chong Ju Choi, Stephen Chen, The Ethics of Counterfeiting in the Fashion Industry, Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 55, No. 4 (Dec., 2004), pp. 345-354. See also French Institute for Intellectual Property, http://www.unifab.com/

APR 15

SPRING BREAK FRI APR 16 MON MAY 3

WEEK 11: MAY 4 MAY 6 PRESENTATIONS PRESENTATIONS

WEEK 12: MAY 11/13 REVIEW/FINAL (contingent on Ascension Day holiday)

READING QUESTIONS 1. What is the context? Look at the text to see when and where the text was published. 2. Who is the author? Look up the author online. 3. What is the approach? Reading the introduction or first paragraph should inform you of the authors intentions. Is the article trying to be historical or theoretical? Is it trying to present facts and research? 4. What is the terminology? In order to accomplish the objectives for this course you will need to understand related terminology. Marking terms for class discussion is helpful. 5. What is the point of view? Reading the conclusion or last paragraph will suggest the authors position. 6. How can it be applied? Can you find evidence of the ideas in the real world? RESEARCH GUIDE The goal is to develop your research skills and gain an informed opinion. 1. The topic should address a specific aspect of fashion and power 2. You are the author, consider existing interests and resources Narrow your research by your existing interests (historic era, particular designer, etc). You are in Paris so also consider something here you can access firsthand. 3. Plan the approach and a specific angle for a point of view You need an angle on the topic. A basic book report style paper (The story of the corset) is not permitted. We will discuss how to narrow the topic through place and date. 4. Use of relevant terminology Use the terms we learn in class in your research analysis 5. Informed point of view By the time you complete your research, you should have an informed point of view on the topic that you can easily express in your presentation. 6. Format Double spaced, maximum 12 point font (Arial, Helvetica, Times New Roman etc) 7-9 pages. The bibliography and footnotes must be consistent with MLA style. You must have 15 sources minimum to start and use a minimum of 5 in direct reference in your paper.