For a Contemporary Vision of the History and the Phenomenology of Fashion

Abstract

This paper traces the salient phenomena that have marked the history of fashion and define it as it is now-adays. Foremost, an attempt is made to value the term “fashion” under different lights. From the 18th century onward, there was a succession of historical, political, social, and cultural changes that accelerated the phenomenon consolidation of fashion as a cultural phenomenon of great importance and dynamism, both in terms of its incursions into the languages of art and in terms of the international economy.

A few focuses follow: on Lombard clothing, on how some items played different roles besides clothing, on the costume in the Goldoni’s theater, on the twentieth-century Decadentism of Oscar Wilde, and others. Other aspects that characterize the industry today follow: the intersection of fashion with all the other arts, the role of magazines in the process of women’s emancipation, the meaning of “fashion showcase”, luxury brands and the phenomenon of their counterfeiting, the role of the “prosumer”, and sustainable fashion laws, looking toward a future zero-carbon society.