FASHION AT THE TIME OF FASCISM. ITALIAN MODERNIST LIFESTYLE 1922-1943

The first visual essay on fashion and modernism in fascist Italy. Drawn up in a fascinating and original manner the book investigates the active role of fashion in the affirmation of a modern aesthetic, between processes of spreading international culture and the visions induced by the regime. The result of wide ranging research, Fashion at the Time of Fascism explores and compares a broad variety of Italian sources: women’s magazines, fashion magazines, cinema and society life, exhibition and commercial catalogues, books and magazines on dressmaking techniques, design and architecture, plus publications by businesses and government departments. The book is a close-knit montage of images and texts that follow the rhythms and rituals of lifestyles in the modern Italian day, developed around four key concepts: Measurement, Model, Mark and Parade. From obsession with the exact measurement of bodies, garments and time to the creation of icons and models of modernity; from the construction of a national fashion system to the spectacular dimension of fashion shows and fascist rituals. An outline of the key figures and the fundamental steps of Italian fashion from the 1920s to the early 1940s, the crucial themes of modernism and the relationship between glamour and the fascist regime’s choreographies. Fashion at the Time of Fascism includes a selection of texts by authors of the day and a wide variety of original critical contributions dealing with and contextualising the course of iconographic development. ---------------------------------------------------- Contributors: Daniela Baroncini, Marco Bertozzi, Vittoria Caterina Caratozzolo, Alessandra Citti, Elda Danese, Riccardo Dirindin, Bonizza Giordani Aragno, Sofia Gnoli, Alessandro Gori, Irene Guzman, Antonella Huber, Alessandra Mariani, Gabriele Monti, Enrica Morini, Federica Muzzarelli, Ivan Paris, Eugenia Paulicelli, Elena Pirazzoli, Elisa Tosi Brandi ---------------------------------------------------- 400 pages and 1500 illustrations ---------------------------------------------------- Mario Lupano is Professor at the Faculty of Arts and Design, Iuav University of Venice, where he teaches Criticism and History of Design. Alessandra Vaccari is Researcher at the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Bologna University, where she teaches Fashion Culture and Design.