There are certain disciplines of study in which there are particular rules or oaths about doing the "right thing"; the Hippocratic Oath for medical studies, for example. In fashion there's no such thing.
I have to admit, it gets me thinking a lot about what I do and the impact that I have. Fashion as a study, especially merchandising, is all about understanding people and using that knowledge to sell them ideas about how their lives can be better if they buy our product.
Now, fashion should be aspirational. We want to admire beautiful things in life. Beautiful things are what give us energy and inspiration. Can you imagine life without sunsets or flowers or the little droplets of dew that settle on stems of grass in the morning? I can't. Fashion is, and always has been, one of those "beautiful things" that we love to admire. Fashion also gives us a confidence boost and makes us feel good about ourselves. But, when is it too aspirational to the point that it becomes damaging? That's the question I have when I go into work each day.
I have struggled with this. I don't want my students leaving my classroom armed with great knowledge about fashion but shockingly low self-esteem because everything we talk about is perfect.
I figured the only way to do my conscience justice is to tell it all; the good, the bad, and the ugly.
In Fashion History next semester, I will absolutely be showing exquisite Rococo gowns because they are stupendous. BUT I will also be reminding that only the wealthy could afford these gowns and that portraits only focused on those people. So, there are billions of people unaccounted for in history; stories that are equally valuable but historically obsolete.
I will discuss how global sourcing and producing in other nations has spurred on the growth of the industry that has benefited us in having low cost products frequently so we can always be "on trend". BUT I will also mention how having this privilege has led to us being able to ignore basic human rights and to take advantage of developing nations who do not have the same social, economic, and safety laws as we do.
I will talk about the role of "influencers" and social media in giving the fashion industry and brands tremendous social power. BUT I will also mention how body image issues are increasing at insane rates because young girls and boys look at altered images online of people they think are real and base their whole worth off those images.
I will talk about the incredible feats in technology we have such as being able to read people's heart health through fabric and being able to create an alternative leather from pineapple leaves, which are normally wasted. BUT I will also mention how the use of pesticides and insecticides on cotton plants is killing the soil health in this nation which impacts our food and water and health, and how those same chemicals are causing higher incidences of cancer in farmers.
The good, the bad, and the ugly. I am not here to "indoctrinate" (as that's people's favorite word for higher education teachers) people to think the way I do. I feel it is my duty as a teacher of a discipline that has literally no far-reaching ethos to present ALL information and have them do what they will with it. That may be my history background playing a role but I don't believe in making any discipline, even one like fashion that is built on everyone's ability to focus on beauty, so aspirational that it cannot be called out on the bad stuff.
Fashion is an exceptionally beautiful discipline in that it combines so many other disciplines into one and makes ART; art that can make someone feel like the most beautiful person in the room or the most powerful person at the boardroom table. Fashion can bring back memories of someone's life. It can take us back to events in our life which we are proud of. It can do so much good. However, it is also incredibly centered on external and when we use that as the sole driver of our marketing, it has the potential to cause so much damage to people.
I will be completely and awkwardly honest here -- I struggle with the way I look. I have days where I think I look alright but generally I have a lot of issues with myself. I teach about perfection so I feel a particular personal drive to keep fashion as aspirational as possible (for the sake of my future endeavors) but humble enough that my students feel compelled to make the world a more positive place through fashion, and that they understand the ugly side of fashion so they can better appreciate the beauty in themselves.
In short, I choose to make fashion beautiful and hideous at the same time so that we can use the good for greatness and the bad for self-examination and change. You can't change the world if you only know half the information. I love fashion. I wouldn't teach it if I didn't. I love it so much that I am not willing to do it the disservice of the veneer that people give it. Fashion is as much pollution as it is Chanel. One side is prettier but both sides are what make it fashion. The Hippocratic Oath says "do no harm" and and education in fashion should be the same. Harm is leaving out the ugly.
Do no harm.
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