The Museum at FIT Fashion Culture Podcast

Andy Hilfiger reminisces with MFIT curator Elizabeth Way about the early days of Tommy Hilfiger and how Hip Hop artists incorporated the brand into their style. This talk was part of MFIT’s 2023 fashion symposium Fresh, Fly, and Fabulous: Fifty Years of Hip Hop Style.

Andy Hilfiger has been blurring the lines between music and fashion for decades. He began his fashion career at 12, selling jeans at his brother Tommy Hilfiger's firs...

What is circular design and how does it fit in the fashion industry? A circular economy is a production and consumption model that emphasizes sharing, reusing, repairing, and recycling materials and products to extend their lifecycle. Lauren B. Fay and Cynthia Power discuss the work of brands and retailers working in this way and answer some great audience questions. 

This talk was recorded September 26, 2024.

Watch t...

The Museum at FIT's current exhibition Fashioning Wonder: A Cabinet of Curiosities is all about sparking awe. In conversation with Randy Cohen of the podcast “Person Place Thing,” Dr. Colleen Hill, MFIT’s curator of costume, discusses how three objects from the exhibition piqued her own curiosity. Cohen's interview approach is to delve into what people are most passionate about, showing that the most captivating conversations happe...

For #WomensHistoryMonth, listen in to this MFIT Fashion Culture Podcast episode highlighting Carolyn Bessette Kennedy’s life and influence as a business woman, muse, and style icon. This conversation between fashion creative director Sunita Kumar Nair and CFDA CEO Steven Kolb was recorded at a 2024 MFIT Fashion Culture program. 

Sunita Kumar Nair is the author of CBK: Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, which gathers the greats of the fashio...

“We wanna be fabulous. We wanna be fly. We wanna be fresh!” declares Ralph McDaniels.

For #BlackHistoryMonth we’re excited to share this conversation between Video Music Box co-creator Ralph McDaniels and FIT professor and author Elena Romero about the styles, sounds, and scene of early hip hop in NYC. 

Ralph McDaniels is the founder and curator of the Video Music Box, which airs on NYC-TV, (channel 25 or 22). McDaniels, also known...

Simon Porte Jacquemus, who was born in the South of France and is now based in Paris, established his eponymous brand in 2009 with no formal training, dedicating the brand to the memory of his late mother. A passion for art and the decorative arts informs his creativity, inspiring the JACQUEMUS men's and women's ready-to-wear and accessories collections that reference French culture and universal gestures of beauty: from fine art p...

“I think there's something quite magical about when you're backstage. And it's not quite seeing behind the magician's curtain, it's more like you know seeing the play from the inside out I guess? ... [McQueen's] backstage was so different to other shows. He was totally hands-on ... and he was involved in everything. He was totally focused and the same obviously was true of all his staff and the interns," explains Alexander McQueen ...

In this conversation between designer Willy Chavarria, professor Aída Hurtado and MFIT’s education curator Tanya Meléndez-Escalante they discuss the term Latinx and its constructs of inclusivity.

This talk was part of The Museum at FIT's fashion symposium “Moda Hoy! Latin American and Latinx Fashion” that was held on October 7, 2022. 

Watch the full video with captions on YouTube. | Read Transcript (PDF)

The Museum at...

The Museum at FIT's Associate Curator of Costume Elizabeth Way sits down with Digital Media Manager Tamsen Young to discuss Africa’s Fashion Diaspora. From past exhibitions to featured designers and objects, Way shares her inspiration and process for curating the exhibition. Together, they delve into the central themes of Africa’s Fashion Diaspora and introduce listeners to the exhibition’s world of diasporic crossings. 

Africa’s F...

“‘Cat Walks’ as they became known were transformed into eye-popping theatrical productions to showcase equally dramatic and one-of-a-kind garments. They became increasingly celebrity driven as well as a form of entertainment for the masses.” - Patricia Mears

In this podcast episode, MFIT Deputy Director Patricia Mears provides an intimate account of several groundbreaking runway shows from the 1990s that she witnessed firsthand. Sh...

When it comes to creativity, fashion designer Anna Sui explains, “I’m like a magpie. If I see something shiny or something that attracts me, I have to look at it and touch it. I could see a fabric, and suddenly I can see a collection.”

Anna Sui is known for her contemporary reimagining of historic textiles and vintage clothing. In this month’s Fashion Culture Podcast episode, Sui is interviewed by MFIT’s...

Before fashion objects can be exhibited, they are first examined by a textile conservator. If the condition of the object is too poor to be mounted or dressed safely, or too visually degraded to provide value in an exhibition, museum conservators conduct specialized treatments. They might stabilize an area of weakness or return an object to its original appearance as much as possible. 

In this conversation, the curator of MFIT’s St...

Paul Martineau, curator of photographs at the J. Paul Getty Museum, and author of the new book "Rodney Smith: A Leap of Faith," joins David Campany, ICP curator at large, in conversation. They discuss the work of photographers Rodney Smith (1947-2016) and William Klein (1926-2022) and what makes fashion photography art. This event was held September 27, 2023.

Read Transcript (PDF) | Watch the full video with captions on YouTube.

Th...

Nick Knight and Amy de la Haye engage in a conversation about his photographs of roses for The Museum at FIT's 24th academic symposium Ravishing: The Rose in Fashion held on April 30, 2021. This virtual event explored how the beauty, mythology, and symbolism of the rose have long influenced fashionable dress. #RoseInFashion Nick Knight OBE is one of the world's most visionary, innovative and creative image makers. Working prima...

Leading celebrity stylist Misa Hylton joined FIT professor Elena Romero in conversation on November 17, 2022. Hylton is acclaimed for creating iconic looks such as the purple pastie-and-pantsuit ensemble worn by Lil’ Kim at MTV’s 1999 Video Music Awards and Beyoncé’s leather MCM bustier and trench coat worn in the 2018 “Apesh*t” music video. Hylton’s past clients include Mary J. Blige, 50 Cent, Missy Elliott, Faith Evans,  and Kimo...

Watch the full video with captions on YouTube.

The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only m...

New York-based fashion designer, Nicole Miller joined Dr. Valerie Steele, director and chief curator of The Museum at FIT, in conversation to discuss Miller’s career in fashion. After studying at Rhode Island School of Design and mastering the classic French techniques of Haute Couture while at Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture in Paris, Miller founded her namesake brand in 1982. Her vision is grounded in empowering women who w...

In a special collaboration with Radio Cherry Bombe, host Kerry Diamond interviews Melissa Marra-Alvarez and Elizabeth Way, curators of The Museum at FIT exhibition Food & Fashion. Together, they discuss Elsa Schiaparelli’s lobster dress, Rachel Antonoff’s pasta puffer, this summer’s grocery girl trend, and more. This episode first launched on Radio Cherry Bombe’s podcast on September 18, 2023.

View transcript (PDF) | Learn more...

Co-curators of ¡Moda Hoy! Latin American and Latinx Fashion– Tanya Meléndez-Escalante and Melissa Marra-Alvarez – discuss their curatorial process in putting together the exhibition, which showcased the fashion contributions of designers of Latin American descent. On view from May 31 - August 27, 2023, the exhibition was organized into thematic sections such as art, craftsmanship, elegance, gender, Indigenous heritage, politics, po...