Special Topics in 19th-Century Art (359-0-1)

Topic

Paris: Fashion Capital of the 18th and 19th Centur

Instructors

Alicia Caticha

Meeting Info

Kresge Centennial Hall 2-410: Mon, Wed 12:30PM - 1:50PM

Overview of class

This course considers the history of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Parisian fashion through the lens of European colonialism and the Atlantic slave trade. Marie-Antoinette's lavish gowns and towering wigs, the empire-waist dresses of the Napoleonic Era, and richly printed calico muslins, among other objects, will be understood through the histories of race, colonialism, science, and industry. Who made these garments? What materials did they use and where were they from? How was fashion deployed as a tool to perform power, gender, race, and national identity? How has the history of Parisian fashion systematically erased the contributions of black women and women of color? How were the very same styles and fashions worn by white Europeans (and particularly French women) transformed by free and enslaved black women as a tool of resistance and expression of identity? Throughout this course, we will also engage with contemporary art and popular culture with the goal of understanding the historical legacy and fetishization of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century period dress.

Class Attributes

Historical Studies Foundational Discipline
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
Historical Studies Distro Area
Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area