Dressed: The History of Fashion
With over 8 billion people in the world, we all have one thing in common: everyday, we all get dressed. Join fashion historians April Calahan and Cassidy Zachary in celebrating the who, what, when of why we wear throughout history and around the world.
Episodes
This week marks the 50th anniversary of one of American fashion's greatest moments: the Battle of Versailles. "Halstonette" Chris Royer joins us to discuss her first hand account of modeling in the now legendary fashion face-off between French haute couture and American design.
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It's official!!! In today's episode we announce the launch of Dressed: The School of Fashion, chat about Prada's upcoming trip to the moon and recommend some fashion history newsletters to follow.
Recommendations:
- Sign up for our first class: What Women Wore to the Revolution, Part I
- IKEA's Designer Towel Skirt
- Fashion Newsletters: Laura Beltran Rubio, Laura McLaws Helm, Jo Weldon
Have you ever pondered, 'but, what would Jane Austen wear?' We have all the answers for you in this episode, as Dr. Hilary Davidson joins us to talk about her two books: Dress in the Age of Jane Austen and Jane Austen's Wardrobe.
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In today's episode, we answer some listener mail about what is and what isn't fast fashion, discuss the documentary Unboxing Shein and chat about the latest news from The Met's Costume Institute.
Recommended:
Fashion Revolution Transparency Index
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Custom couturier to brides, debutantes and American socialites, including Jacqueline Bouvier and Marjorie Merriweather Post, The Saturday Evening Post once called Ann Lowe "society's best kept secret." Today, we explore the true breadth of Lowe's career with fashion curator Elizabeth Way who joins us to speak about her exhibition Ann Lowe: American Couturier, which is currently on view through January 7, 2024...
Just as fashion is more than pretty clothes, basketball is more than just a game. Pulitzer Prize winning author Mitchell S. Jackson joins us to discuss why the relationship between fashion and basketball matters historically and today.
Purchase Fly: The Big Book of Basketball Fashion
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Fashion luminary and trailblazing model, agent and activist Bethann Hardison joins us to discuss her life and legacy as explored in the new documentary Invisible Beauty.
- More on the documentary Invisible Beauty
- Bethann's website
- Our Battle of Versailles interview with Robin Givan
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In part two of our 2-part episode on the MFA Boston's exhibition Fashioned by Sargent, art historian Dr. Erica Hirshler re-joins us to speak about some of Sargent's most famous works including Madame X and his sensuous portraits of male style icons of the day.
Recommended reading: Hirshler, Erica, et al eds. Fashioned by Sargent. Boston: MFA Publications, 2023.
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All this week, Dr. Erica Hirshler joins us to talk about the sartorial stylings of one of history's great painters of fashion, John Singer Sargent. In part one of this two-part episode, we learn a bit about Sargent's international upbringing and career as well as his sometimes dictatorial role in styling his sitters. The exhibition Fashioned by Sargent is currently on view at the Museum of Fine Arts Boston through January 1...
Nothing gets between a woman and her fashion! Dr. Elizabeth Block joins us for part two of our episode on Gilded Age fashion in a discussion on fashionable smuggling, thievery, and the costumes of Gilded Age Season 2!
Get your hands on a copy of Dr. Block's book Dressing Up: The Women Who Influenced French Fashion here.
Relevant past Dressed episodes:
...
Dr. Elizabeth Block joins us to discuss her book Dressing Up: The Women Who Influenced French Fashion which celebrates the lesser known figures behind the international success of the French haute couture in the late 19th century, most notably their elite American clientele who were driving forces of Gilded Age fashion.
Get your hands on a copy of Dressing Up: The Women Who Influenced French Fashion here.
Relevant past Dressed epis...
Anticipating the premier of The Gilded Age season 2 next week, we examine the practices and pitfalls of party etiquette of the American elite during the late 19th century.
Past Dressed episode: Call Me: The Perils of 19th Century Etiquette
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From 19th-century hand-embroidered laundry pillows to the fashion fantasy dreamscapes of Tilda Swinton and Tim Walker, we bring you the latest news from fashion history and fashion history in the making.
Recommendations:
- Laundry pillow featured on @historicembroidery
- Facekinis
- Dressed episode A Brief History of Sunscreen
- Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Memorial
- Cornell's Remember the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory
- Tilda Swinton's ...
We highlight a few of our favorite fashion history titles from the hundreds on the Dressed bookshelf.
Books discussed in today's episode:
- Chinese Dress in Detail by San Fong Chan
- China Adorned: Ritual and Custom of Ancient Cultures by Professor Deng Qiyao
- Patchwork: A World Tour by Catherine Legrand
- Fashion Before Plus-Size: Bodies, Bias and the Birth of an Industry by Lauren Downing Peters
- Creating African Fashion Histories: Pol...
In part two of our episode with sustainability communicator Clare Press of the podcast Wardrobe Crisis, we discuss a whole host of innovators who are currently plotting fashion's brighter future. Her latest book, Wear Next: Fashioning the Future is out now!
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Our favorite fashion activist and fellow podcastress, Clare Press of Wardrobe Crisis, joins us in this first installment of this week's two-part episode discussing her latest book Wear Next: Fashioning the Future.
Recommended reading:
What's the matter with Shein?!
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Costume and production designer Catherine Martin takes us behind the seams of her and her team's work on the 2022 Elvis biopic, directed by Baz Luhrmann and starring Austin Butler.
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Four time Academy Award winning costume and production designer Catherine Martin joins us to talk about her illustrious four plus decade long career designing some of the most beloved blockbuster hits of all time, including Moulin Rouge and The Great Gatsby.
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This week we catch up on the departure of more than one notable fashion designer, recommend a bevy of documentaries out now on the modeling industry, chat about the Sotheby's recent Fashion Icons sale and so much more!
We also give you updates on our New York fashion history day tours...
Dressed's NYC day tours December 7-9th, 2023
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