Description
Book SynopsisFrancesca Granata is Associate Professor in the School of Art and Design History and Theory at Parsons the New School for Design, New York. She is the editor and founder of the journal
Fashion Projects. Her work has appeared in
Fashion Theory, Fashion Practice, and
The Journal of Design History,
The Atlantic as well as in a number of books and exhibition catalogues.
Trade ReviewThis is a timely book in that many of the concepts discussed resonate strongly with the current cultural context: gynophobia and fear of the fat feminine body; neoliberalism, corporate greed and the "enterprising self"; and fear of border crossings and the breakdown of cultural categories. * Morna Laing, "Fashion Theory: The Journal of Dress, Body and Culture" *
The strengths of this book are two-fold, both reframing Bakhtin's theory of the Grotesque body as a tool for the analysis of fashion and also its ability to theorize the very edges of fashion [...] [I]n doing so, Granata does both fashion studies and design history a great service. * Ellen Sampson, "The Journal of Design History" *
A very welcome contribution to the field of fashion studies, not least through its attention to an aspect of fashion—experimental fashion—that has so far been given little attention. * Agnès Rocamora, Reader in Social and Cultural Studies at London College of Fashion, University of the Arts, London and author of "Fashioning the City" *
[H]er work begins to bridge a gap in literature concerned with the intersections of fashion practice and performance art. [...] While Granata's work is both methodologically and theoretically complex it is presented with absolute clarity and this level of accessibility is highly commendable. * Fenella Hitchcock, "Costume: The Journal of The Costume Society" *
Granata continually reconsiders the grotesque within the contexts of different fields of both culture and academe. Borrowing from psychoanalysis, feminist theory, performance and film studies, she creates a vivid narrative that inspects grotesque corporealities in a variety of cultural forms through meticulous analysis of primary sources. * Jana Melkumova-Reynolds, "International Journal of Fashion Studies" *
Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter 1 Against Power Dressing: Georgina Godley Chapter 2 Fashioning the Maternal Body: Rei Kawakubo Chapter 3 Performing Pregnancy: Leigh Bowery Chapter 4 Deconstruction and the Grotesque: Martin Margiela Chapter 5 Carnivalized Time: Martin Margiela Chapter 6 Carnival Iconography: Bernhard Willhelm Chapter 7 Fashion and Performance: Lady Gaga Conclusion Appendix Bibliography Index
