73067 - Theories and Methods of Fashion Archives (1)

Academic Year 2018/2019

  • Docente: Chiara Micol Schiona
  • Credits: 6
  • SSD: L-ART/03
  • Language: Italian
  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
  • Campus: Rimini
  • Corso: First cycle degree programme (L) in Fashion Cultures and Techniques (cod. 8772)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student acquires knowledge related to the tools and methods of cataloging and filing of fashion objects. Through the development of interpretative and historical-critical abilities he is able to evaluate the characteristics of objects as elements of material culture and in their historical, social and artistic meanings.

At the end of the course the student acquires knowledge related to the tools and methods of cataloging and filing of fashion objects. Through the development of interpretative and historical-critical abilities he is able to evaluate the characteristics of objects as elements of material culture and in their historical, social and artistic meanings.
At the end of the course the student acquires knowledge related to the tools and methods of cataloging and filing of fashion objects. Through the development of interpretative and historical-critical abilities he is able to evaluate the characteristics of objects as elements of material culture and in their historical, social and artistic meanings.

Course contents

What do we talk about when we talk about Archives for Fashion? They are a continuous and systematic reservoir of the patrimony not only archival documentary but bibliographic, iconographic, audiovisual, related to fashion companies.
Historic companies represent the maximum expression of the company's objective: the lasting over time. The latter could not be possible except with the preservation of one's own business memory or thanks to a proper conservation and enhancement of its archive.
Given the wide time span of life, the management of change becomes one of the most important steps to be monitored in its archives to aim more and more to the future without forgetting the past.
The route starts at the beginning of the 20th century and reaches up to current events, winding through the most important fashion sectors. Here we will be able to detect the constant evolution of a company and how it is above all preserved and promoted its own Heritage. Patents, drawings, trademarks, testify to the evolution and expansion of Italian creativity in the last hundred years and are also the subjects that characterize a fashion archive as elements that contribute to the cultural promotion strategy of a brand.
We will focus on the value of Italian creativity applied to industrial production, and the importance of proper protection of industrial property to maintain the competitiveness of the country system in international markets.
The objective is that, through the analysis of individual cases, of delineating the archival thinking applied to the fashion sector, of how it is the fulcrum of the lively and continuous promotion of a business. During the lessons it will be possible to see the products that have taken shape from the creators' ideas and the modalities with which they were presented on the market and subsequently inserted into the collective memory thanks to the correct archiving.
From here we want to emphasize the creation of that figure, the fashion archivist who, through the technical and theoretical knowledge of organization and management, is aimed at both the conservation over time of the various archival material and the enhancement of the same. The methods of cataloging, conservation, enhancement and finally the best use of what is contained in the archive will then be indicated, to underline all its possibilities.

Readings/Bibliography

For attending students it is ONLY required the study of the slides of the lessons that will be sent either by email or inserted in the online portal of the educational material.

For non-attending students it is required to study the handouts, which will be inserted in the online portal of the teaching material, consisting of a selection of texts mainly taken from:

1. AMATORI, F., RICCINI, R. (a cura di), Copyright Italia. Brevetti, marchi, prodotti 1948-1970, GFP, 2011

2. BENEDETTI, L. (a cura di), Il tessuto come arte. Antonio Ratti: imprenditore e mecenate, MER, 2018

3. BOSONI, G. (a cura di), Brevetti del design italiano-Original patents of Italian design 1946-1966, Venezia, Mondadori Electa, 2000

4. DORFLES, G., La (nuova) moda della moda, Milano, Costa & Nolan, 2008

5. MONTEMAGGI, M., SEVERINO, F., Heritage marketing, Milano, Franco Angeli, 2007

6. SACERDOTE, E., Aziende storiche operative e silenti. Cambiamento, evoluzione, strategia e rinascita, Milano, Franco Angeli, 2014

7. SILVESTRI, I. (a cura di), Vintage: la memoria della moda, Compositori, 2010

and of the complete study of the text:

VALACCHI, F., Archivio: concetti e parole, Milano, Editrice Bibliografica, 2018

For attending students it is required to study the slides of the lessons and handouts provided by the teacher with a selection of texts mainly taken from:
For attending students it is required to study the slides of the lessons and handouts provided by the teacher with a selection of texts mainly taken from:

Teaching methods

Lectures, video projections, exercises, presentations.

Lectures, video projections, exercises, presentations.

Assessment methods

Final oral exam. Good interdisciplinary orientation is required, ranging from the concept of a business archive to the methods of promoting archival heritage. For attending students the exam will consist mainly of questions related to the slides of the lessons integrated with the exam bibliography.
For students not attending the exam consists of an oral interview on the texts in the bibliography.
For attending and non-attending students, the critical ability to analyze the topics and concepts addressed in reading the exam bibliography and the mastery of a specific language appropriate to the subject will be evaluated in particular.

Teaching tools

Seminars, multimedia tools.

Office hours

See the website of Chiara Micol Schiona