Fashion's engagement with Politics and the role of Politics in Fashion

Abstract

This study aims to identify and analyse the influencing factors on the processes of diffusion between fashion and politics as well as to determine forms and methods of their interaction which now appear to emerge as a separate topic for scientific research (e.g. aestheticism within political life and political dimension of the fashion itself). On the basis of an interdisciplinary approach, politics and fashion are comprehensively analyzed as two important social regulators. This analysis uses historical sources, theoretical and methodological developments of Ukrainian and foreign scientists who studied the process of diffusion between fashion and politics. Such processes of diffusion were identified and considered accordingly within the most significant factors of influence: politics is the dictator of fashion; fashion is a symbol of a political movement; political leaders are dictators of fashion; fashion is the language and weapon of fashion designers. A comprehensive analysis showed that over the centuries in all contries of the world fashion performed the role of an identifier of the social stratification of society, was an indicator of social status, a reflection of political processes. Fashion is considered as an ideological imagery of a political movement and a symbol of the idea represented by an image. Also, functions of fashionable symbols have been revealed. It was determined that national revolutionary movements and wars influence fashion innovations, in particular, the development of patriotic clothing style (national clothing style; revolutionary fashion; military fashion). The process of diffusion is considered based on the analysis of the visual image of political leaders. It has been determined that the visual image plays an important role in the formation of the image of the state, as it is shaped within the consciousness of society and with the help of associative connection. Fashion also plays an important role in the evolution of political identities. Conceptual presentations of fashion collections have been proven to be a spectacular and an effective form of diffusion between fashion and politics. Such shows present a scenographic character of protest and manifest and are powerful and effective in influencing collective political consciousness of a society. Since the visuality is a priority in postmodern culture, one of the relevant topics for further research will be the issue of design and fashion in the field of political imagelogy of the post-war period in Ukraine, which will also encompass topics on development strategies and methods as well as influencing factors and effective tools.