Couture and the Postcolonial Lens

我的博士项目将探索令人担忧的历史和殖民偏见，这些偏见在欧洲和南亚高级时装之间创造了持久的等级制度。欧洲高级定制服装是一个受法律保护的术语，描述的是独一无二的手工服装，被认为是全球服装生产的巅峰，而次大陆设计师的高级定制服装则被指定为“民族”服装。为了质疑和挑战这一概念，我将对来自欧洲和印度的高级定制服装进行第一次比较研究。我的项目将开发三个案例研究(如上所述)，以构建一个完整的分析殖民的历史和现在在创造时装/服装划分的角色。这种方法结合了基于对象的研究和对相应的文字和摄影记录的仔细阅读。每件服装都隐含着时代的文化、地理和政治背景，这对理解高级定制服装/民族服装等级具有重要意义。我将使用案例研究的材料和比较分析来开发一种历史的、文化的和批判性的方法来研究这两个地区生产的高级定制服装，关注物质文化、跨国创作和消费循环之间的相互作用，以及服装在传达殖民权力方面的作用。

My doctoral project will explore the fraught history and colonial biases that have created an enduringhierarchy between European and South Asian high fashion. European haute couture - a legally-protectedterm describing exclusive, hand-made garments - is held as the pinnacle of global clothing production,while the couture-level output of subcontinental designers is designated as 'ethnic' costume. In order tointerrogate and challenge this construct, I will conduct the first comparative study of couture garmentsfrom Europe and India. My project will develop three case-studies (detailed above) to construct acomplete analysis of colonization's historical and present role in creating the couture/costume divide.This approach combines object-based study with a close reading of corresponding textual andphotographic records. Each garment implicates cultural, geographic, and political contexts of periodscrucial to understanding the couture/ethnic costume hierarchy. I will use the case studies' material andcomparative analysis to develop a historical, cultural, and critical approach to couture produced in bothregions that pays attention to the interplay between material culture, transnational circuits of creationand consumption, as well as the role of dress in telegraphing colonial power.