Link To Dissertation

For my creative project I wanted to do a styling shoot that included clothes made by chinese designers and modeled by a chinese model. I ended up developing a magazine concept called Appreciation. Appreciation is a Niche Magazine dedicated to educating todays youth on Cultural Appropriation and Cultural Appreciation. I believe that the way to overcome and defeat racism and stereotypes is through education. Each issue will feature a culture that has been subservient, looked down on, misrepresented, wrongfully treated, etc. Sensitivity and compassion needs to be taught and Fashion constantly blurs the line between right and wrong. This magazine will aim to create awareness for designers, countries, and cultures.

Issue 1, “Chinophile”, is dedicated to Chinese culture and specifically the relationship between the East and West. China is a country that has had centuries long relationship with the West, dating back to Christopher Columbus in the days of “Cathay”. Chinas influence on Western fashion is undeniable and even sparked a Met Gala theme “China Through The Looking Glass”. Western fashion designers still incorporate Chinese design in 2019 collections. Chinas growing economy has also given Western brands more reason to do so in recent years, now using Chinese style to target Chinese consumers. Some Western brands have been criticized for racism, while others have been accepted and praised. I believe in Cultural appreciation and believe that it is achievable. I also believe that in 2019 it is time to for countries like China to have a bigger role in the luxury market as creatives rather than just consumers

My dissertation was on the “The History of Western Stereotyping of China and How It Has Affected Fashion Today”. In my dissertation research I found that a lot of stereotypes still exist and are evident in Western Fashion. I also found in my dissertation that right now there are a lot of emerging Chinese fashion designers due to economic reasons, globalization, politics, etc. I wanted to combine my findings and present a way to show how Cultural Appreciation can be achieved through proper representation and education.