FMP RESEARCH: W E E K 1/2

I began my research for Part 2 of this brief by thinking about issues or activism I am interested in. My dissertation topic is querying the revival of 1950s lingerie/corsetry and how this relates to the eroticism of this time period as well as the present day. Through my research and writing for my dissertation I became interested in the matter of lingerie, erotic imagery and fetishism as a feminist issue and the debates around it, so I particularly want to investigate feminist issues or imagery for my FMP.

I began my research for this brief by looking initially at feminism in fashion – for example the rising trend of feminist slogan t-shirts and campaigns, and the issues that arise with this in a capitalist society – asking the question, can fashion ever really be feminist? I think this is an interesting area to research and interrogate as there is a huge rise of feminist discourse particularly online and in art collectives, but there is a feeling that feminist acts in the fashion industry are quite superficial or meaningless, due to design, production and marketing methods.

I progressed my research into feminist discussion through image-making, by looking into Riot Grrrl zines and the aesthetics, characteristics and topics they adopted. I am particularly interested in self-published zines as a form of rebellion, and the fact that they can defy all norms or expected qualities of  because of this. I began to question whether it is possible to create a subversive fashion publication, going against the expectations of how one should be designed, the content inside it and how it generally talks about fashion and style, and addresses the reader.

I want to continue my research into alternative graphic design, image-making and aesthetics for publications, to begin thinking of ideas for my own publication, and the identity, tone and discussion it will provide.