Fashion under fascism : beyond the black shirt

General Information

Author/Creator
Paulicelli, Eugenia, 1958-
Language
English.
Published
Oxford ; New York : Berg, 2004.
Physical Description
xii, 227 p. : ill. ; 24 cm.
Series
Dress, body, culture

Contents/Summary

Summary
Prada, Gucci, Max Mara: high fashion is synonymous with luxury, glamor, pleasure, and Italy. Yet Italian fashion also has a dark history that has not previously been explored. The Fascism of 1930's Italy dominated more than just politics--it spilled over into modes of dress. Fashion under Fascism is the first book to consider this link in detail. Fashion often functions as a tacit means of making a social statement, but under Mussolini it vividly reflected political tyranny. Paulicelli explores the subtle yet sinister changes to the seemingly innocuous practices of everyday dress and shows why they were such a concern for the state. Importantly, she also demonstrates how these developments impacted on the global dominance of Italian fashion today. This fascinating book includes interviews with major designers, such as Fernanda Gattinoni and Micol Fontana, and sheds new light on the complicated relationship between style and politics.

Subjects

Subject
Fashion > Italy > History > 20th century.
Clothing and dress > Italy > History > 20th century.
Fascism > Italy > History > 20th century.

Bibliographic Information

Responsibility
Eugenia Paulicelli.
Content
Introduction. Fashion and Italian Identity: An Ongoing Process and Love Affair -- The Bella Figura and the Fashioned Self. The Birth of a Discourse on Dress and the Craze for Fashion in Renaissance Italy -- Fashion, Gender and Power in Interwar Italy -- Inventing the Italian Look: Between Modernity and Tradition -- Fashion, Culture and National Identity. Rosa Genoni and the Futurists -- The "New Woman" and Fascism. Lydia De Liguoro and the Project for an Italian Fashion -- "An Italian Fashion does not exist yet. We must create it" -- Disciplining the Body, Language and Style -- The Discourse on Fashion Under the Fascist Regime. An Italian Dictionary and Commentary of Fashion by Cesare Meano -- Restless Voices. Femininity, Motherhood and Gender in Women's Writing in Bellezza -- Dress, Style and the National Brand -- The Commentario by Meano and Nationalism -- Sport, Gender and Models of Femininity -- Fashion, Film and the Politics of the Regime -- From Hollywood to France. From France to Italy: Alessandro Blasetti's Contessa di Parma -- Nationalizing the Fashion Industry? -- The Intelligent Fibres: Between Innovation and Autarchy -- Grandi Magazzini and Standardization -- Cinegiornali on Fashion: Advertising the Italian Look -- I Grandi Magazzini by Mario Camerini as a Popular Novel -- The National Conference on "Clothing and Autarchy," Turin, June 1940 -- Conclusion. Beyond the Black Shirt: Resisting the Code -- Appendix: Interview with Fashion Designer Micol Fontana.
Library Special Collection
The Roger Griffin ComFas Collection
ISBN
1859737730
1859737781

Holdings

Item Type Current Location Collection Call Number Volume Info Shelving Location Public Note
BookOSA Archivum LibraryGeneral collection391/.00945/0904 PAUGeneral Stacks-

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