On Wednesday October 4th, Ulrich Lehmann presented his recent case study in textile manufacturing for the first-year MA Fashion Studies Program. Ulrich Lehmann is a prominent fashion historian, an Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Arts at The New School in New York, a Professor of Fashion at the University for the Creative Arts at Rochester, and a Research Fellow at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. With a background in philosophy, sociology and art history, Lehmann has constructed a rigorous analysis of the fashion theory and industry. He has also curated exhibitions on fashion, photography, automotive and product design.
Lehmann’s research largely focuses on material culture in Europe from the 1780’s to present day. While visiting and studying the Bonotto textile factory in Molvena, Lehmann explored fashion as a creative and complex economic system. He also explored fashion as an expression of the contemporary spirit, with allusion to satirical elements that embody the pace and rhythm of modern society and culture.
Ulrich Lehmann’s lecture concluded with a metaphor of the factory floor as a space where performance art is created, using the machines as cultural artefacts, and having factory workers “play” the machines as instruments. His exploration of material culture and the textile industry shed light on a rich history of italian textiles and consumption throughout the 18th and 19th centuries.
Written by: Olivia Johnson
Photo Courtesy of: Fondazione Bonotto
