History of Fashion and Style Online Short Course

The History of Fashion and Style Online Short Course is designed to introduce you to historic key moments in Western dress history and theory over 200 years from the French Revolution through to the 1990s. This course provides a focus on the social, political and economic backdrop to fashion. Topics covered: - Extravagant 18th century court fashions and the politics of clothing during the Revolution - 19th century haute couture and the changing silhouette, dress reform movements and mourning etiquette - The tailoring traditions of Savile Row - The modernist look of the 1920s flapper and how shifting ideas about gender have informed fashion design - The rise of Hollywood and the impact on fashions in the 1930s - Exploring the myths of 1940s austerity styles, and the post-war romance of Dior's 'New Look' - The explosion of postwar youth culture and the legacy of street style - Approaches to fashion curation - Exploration of the cyclical nature of styles in culture and fashion history - Illustrated lectures, videos and discussions - Time for students to conduct their own historical research and present to the class