Fashion under Fascism by Eugenia Paulicelli

Fashion under Fascism by Eugenia Paulicelli

Looking at the dark history of Italian fashion by focusing on the impact of 1930s Fascism, this is the second edition of Eugenia Paulicelli's classic text.

In Fashion under Fascism, Paulicelli explores the subtle yet sinister changes to the seemingly innocuous practices of everyday dress and shows why they were such a concern for the state. Importantly, she also demonstrates how these developments impacted on the global dominance of Italian fashion today. Alongside interviews with major designers, such as Fernanda Gattinoni and Micol Fontana, this newly expanded revised edition includes updated material on gender and masculinity, the role of uniforms in standardizing individuality, race and colonial Italy, and the reception of 1930s cinema. It sheds new light on the complicated relationship between style and politics and is an essential read for all those interested in the history of fashion, politics, national identity and the culture of fascism.

This book demonstrates why fashion is such a great lever to activate our thinking about politics – politics of space, material and the bodyThe holistic understanding of such multiple politics, grounded in historical studies of moving clothes and moving images, emerges here forcefully from Eugenia Paulicelli’s study of Fascism’s cultural genealogy. Her book exposes Italian Fascism as an insidious ideology of the everyday, of a ‘way of life', and she strongly reminds us that Fascism may change its guise but, alas, has yet to go out of fashion. * Ulrich Lehmann, The New School, New York, USA *
This is a timely update to a book that at once responds to the sociopolitical circumstances of the past, but also explains their continuing relevance in the present. New content added since the first edition twenty years ago has transformed a classic text into a comprehensive guide to how fashion has shaped Italian identity under fascist rule and beyond. * Julia Petrov, Royal Ontario Museum, Canada *
This illuminating book offers a critical reinterpretation of the cultural role of the fashion industry under Fascism and the regime's policies. Seamstresses, journalists, artists from the Futurist movement and cinema were key players in a transformation that helped shape the identity of Italian fashion. Eugenia Paulicelli offers an innovative guide to Fascist-era fashion and its controversial legacy. * Emanuela Scarpellini, University of Milan, Italy *
The new edition of Eugenia Paulicelli's pioneering Fashion under Fascism provides a rich and deeply illuminating analysis of the cultural, social and economic processes of Mussolini's Italy. Informed by a wealth of new research, it deals authoritatively with male as well as female fashion, the role of cinema, the birth of Italian style and the legacy of fascist fashion. The book is an indispensable work for anyone interested in modern Italian culture and society. * Stephen Gundle, University of Warwick, UK *

Eugenia Paulicelli is Professor of Italian and Women’s Studies at The Graduate Center and Queens College of The City University of New York, USA, where she is the Founder and Director of the Concentration in Fashion Studies. She is author, editor and co-editor of 13 books and monographs. Among her latest publications: Italian Style: Fashion & Film from Early Cinema to the Digital Age (Bloomsbury: 2016); The Routledge Companion to Fashion Studies (with V. Manlow and E. Wissinger, 2021).

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781350353367
ISBN 10	1350353361
Title	Fashion under Fascism
Author	Eugenia Paulicelli
Series	Dress Body Culture
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Year published	2025-02-20
Number of pages	336
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.