In-person Talk: The Fashion Chronicles: Style Stories of History’s Best Dressed

From Eve's fig leaf to Hillary Clinton's pantsuit, the way we choose to clothe our bodies can carry layer upon layer of meaning. Across cultures and throughout history people have used clothing to signify power and status, to adorn and beautify, even to prop up or dismantle regimes. In this illustrated talk, fashion historian Amber Butchart takes us through some of the key figures of the Tudor, Georgian and Edwardian eras to show the importance of communication through clothing.

This talk is taken from Amber's book, The Fashion Chronicles: Style Stories of History’s Best Dressed, which crosses continents and over 5000 years to examine what 'best dressed' really means. It features 100 people from Sappho to Tutankhamun, Karl Marx and Michelle Obama, subverting the ‘best dressed’ trope and using it to uncover sartorial stories from prehistory to the present. From aesthetics to activism, The Fashion Chronicles is a manifesto for fashion history, illuminating how the study of clothing can act as a portal to the past.

Amber Butchart is a curator, writer and broadcaster, perhaps best known for presenting BBCs ‘A Stitch in Time’. Butchart is also author of five books on the history and culture of clothing and is currently curating exhibitions for the Fashion and Textile Museum in London.

Guests will be greeted on arrival with a glass of Prosecco or non-alcoholic Nozeco and have the opportunity to enjoy a private view of the ‘Dressed for Shaw’ costume exhibition after the talk.

Talk duration: 45 minutes, with 15 minutes Q&A and time to view the ‘Dressed for Shaw’ costume exhibition.

Friday 24 June | Shaw House | Doors open 5.30pm | Talk 6pm | £15 per person (includes 125ml glass of Prosecco/Nozeco and Private View)