It is broadly recognized that black style had a clear and profound influence on the history of dress in the twentieth century; with black culture and fashion having long been defined as cool. Yet despite this high profile; in-depth explorations of the culture and history of style and dress in the African diaspora are a relatively recent area of enquiry. The Birth of Cool asserts that cool is seen as an arbiter of presence; and relates how both iconic and ordinary black individuals and groups have marked out their lives through the styling of their bodies.Focusing on counter- and sub-cultural contexts; this book investigates the role of dress in the creation and assertion of black identity. From the gardenia corsage worn by Billie Holiday to the work-wear of female African-Jamaican market traders; through to the home-dressmaking of black Britons in the 1960s; and the meaning of a polo-neck jumper as depicted in a 1934 self-portrait by African-American artist Malvin Gray Johnson; this study looks at the ways in which the diaspora experience is expressed through self-image.Spanning the late nineteenth century to the modern day; the book draws on ready-made and homemade fashion; photographs; paintings and films; published and unpublished biographies and letters from Britain; Jamaica; South Africa; and the United States to consider how personal style statements reflect issues of racial and cultural difference. The Birth of Cool is a powerful exploration of how style and dress both initiate and confirm change; and the ways in which they expresses identity and resistance in black culture.
#3834011 in eBooks 2015-10-28 2015-10-28File Name: B018K33YWE
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