Redressing Fashion Laura Beltrán-Rubio

In the first interview of Redressing Fashion, Laura interviews Faith Cooper about her research on Asian fashion and her work behind the digital project, Asian Fashion Archive. They talk about cultural identity in fashion, some of Faith’s favorite aspects about Asian fashion, and how to redress fashion from Asian perspectives.

About Faith:
Faith Cooper is the creator of the digital resource project Asian Fashion Archive. Currently, she is participating in the Fulbright U.S. Student Program studying Brand and Fashion Management
at Fu Jen Catholic University in Taiwan. Previously she taught the Cross Cultural Expressions of Fashion and Dress course at the Fashion Insitute of Technology and worked in the education department at The Museum at FIT. In addition to her experience working in fashion education, Faith’s past professional experience includes working at Christie’s, Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Vogue, and International Condé Nast. Faith holds a master's degree in Fashion and Textile Studies and a bachelor's degree
in Art History and Museum Professions, both from the Fashion Institute of Technology.
Asian Fashion Archive website: https://asianfashionarchive.com/home Asian Fashion Archive on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/asianfashionarchive About Faith Cooper: https://www.faithtcooper.com/ 
Relevant links & references:
Fu Jen Catholic University Chinese Textiles and Clothing Culture Center in Taiwan: https://ctccc.tc.fju.edu.tw/Guo Pei exhibition at the Asian Civilisations Museum: https://www.nhb.gov.sg/acm/whats-on/exhibitions/guo-pei Book – Fashion, Identity, and Power in Modern Asia edited by Kyunghee Pyun and Aida Yuen Wong (2018)Book – Rethinking Fashion Globalization edited by Sarah Cheang, Erica de Greef, and Yoko Takagi (2021)Book – The Japanese Revolution in Paris Fashion by Yuniya Kawamura (2004)Book – Fashioning Japanese Subcultures by Yuniya Kawamura (2013)—
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In this (unscripted) episode, I share a bit about my new life in London, especially as I attempt to navigate what decentering/unsettling/decolonizing fashion might look like from one of its global capitals. I also talk about my three favorite—though unconventional and certainly more diverse than what mainstream media has been talking about—runway shows at London Fashion Week. Finally, I offer some reflections on how I’ve been approaching my teaching and research now that I’m back in fashion academia, but in a much more hegemonic site. Stay to the end for three little lessons I’ve learned with these spontaneous reflections!
Relevant links & references (in order of appearance):
Book: Everyday Fashion: Interpreting British Clothing since 1600, ed. Bethan Bide, Jade Halbert and Liz TregenzaVideo of SUNCUN runway show at London Fashion Week: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twvgJtvTt0wIndia Day at London Fashion Week: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bbbd84J1MjAVideo of Jasive Fernández runway: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dnbx3p6JaQgMy new faculty profile: https://www.dmu.ac.uk/about-dmu/academic-staff/art-design-humanities/laura-beltran-rubio/laura-beltran-rubio.aspx—
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In this episode, Laura shares some of her initial ideas on what it means to redress fashion from a historical perspective. This episode combines a presentation she gave at the Chicago Fashion Lyceum in 2020 with her Ph.D. dissertation and a 2022 published essay. You’ll hear about the separate definitions that we are often given for “fashion,” “costume,” and “dress” and be left with reflection prompts that question the need for such separate categories and the close relationship between categorization and colonialist dynamics.

Relevant links & references (in order of appearance):
Join Laura’s Re/dressing Fashion Book Club: https://patreon.com/laurabelru/ Portrait of Doña María Catalina de Urrutia by José Campeche at The Hispanic Society of America: https://hispanicsociety.org/exhibition/current-exhibitions-works-on-loan/treasures-on-the-terrace_highlights-from-the-hispanic-society-museum-and-library/dona-maria/ Margaret Maynard’s Fashioned from Penury: Dress as Cultural Practice in Colonial Australia (1994): https://search.worldcat.org/title/29031387 Instagram Reel with Dr Hilary Davidson’s comment: https://www.instagram.com/p/C2LpDf0p5PI/--
Visit my blog: https://laurabelru.com/
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In this episode, Laura introduces herself and shares what it means to “redress fashion.” Listen all the way to the end for a surprise giveaway and to learn more about what to expect in future episodes of this show!

Relevant links & references (in order of appearance):
Laura’s biography: https://laurabelru.com/biography/ Laura’s publication portfolio: https://laurabelru.com/publications/ Digital companion to my dissertation, “Empire of Fashion/Imperio de moda”: https://imperiodemoda.com/en/home/ Prof. Paul Ingram’s Columbia University faculty page: https://business.columbia.edu/faculty/people/paul-ingram Interview with Paul Ingram on creating a values-based culture (Intersections podcast): https://www.hitendra.com/podcast/creating-a-values-based-culture --
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I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what it means to be a fashion historian. My reflections have focused on a more practical and perhaps even “philosophical” take on what it means to be a fashion historian in the very disturbed world that we live in today. In this episode, I ponder questions like: What is the purpose—if any—of fashion history? How can we use fashion history to actively reshape an industry that is clearly rotten and needs a good shakeout? And what is the role of a fashion historian in shaping contemporary design or even the future of fashion?
**This was first published as an audioblog on November 9, 2023.
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In this episode, I use Indigenous Peoples Day and Indigenous Resistance Day as an excuse—as if I needed one—to talk just a little bit more about Indigenous fashion, especially in Latin America.
**This was first published as an audioblog on October 12, 2023.
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