Upcoming Conferences in New York

A 1933 window display devoted to American designers at Lord & Taylor in Manhattan from the New York Times

April brings at least two conferences of interest. One is a rather large conference organized by FIT's Sustainability Group. While not focusing specifically on fashion, the conference does have a number or sections that revolve around organic textiles--cotton in particular, as well as one paper on the topic of Slow Design. Ambitiously titled "Putting Sustainability into Action," the conference is scheduled to take place on April 2nd and pre-registration is encouraged.

More specifically on fashion and much smaller in scope is the yearly Richard Martin Visual Culture Symposium organized by the MA in Costume Studies at NYU. This year's keynote speaker is Phyllis Magidson, Curator of Costumes and Textiles at The Museum of the City of New York who will speak on fashion in New York and Paris from 1914 to 1941--possibly an extension of the recent exhibition at the Museum of the City of New York "Paris/New York: Design Fashion Culture, 1925-1940."

Among the papers presented are "Fashion and Façade: Addressing and Undressing the Bourgeoisie in Emile Zola’s Pot-Bouille" by Jessica Pescosolido, "The Italian Look: Unique Synergies at Work" by Gabriella Pannunzio, "Shapewear: A Complicated Affair A Study in the Resurgence of Body Shapers Worn by American Women" by Ashley Cohen, and "Jungle Red and Dragon Ladies: American Femininities and the Modern Manicure" by Suzanne Shapiro. The symposium takes place on Friday April 3rd Friday from 6:00-8:00 in the Einstein Auditorium at 34 Stuyvesant Street.