Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Date of Degree

6-2014

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Program

Liberal Studies

Advisor

Matthew K. Gold

Subject Categories

Art and Materials Conservation | United States History

Keywords

American Fashion, Digital Humanities, Fashion History, Fashion Studies, New York, New York World's Fair 1939/1940

Abstract

At the beginning of the twentieth century New York City was the garment manufacturing capital of the United States of America, but it was not considered a fashion reference for the world. This study examines the role of the New York World's Fair of 1939/1940 as the first event where the New York fashion industry presented itself as a consolidated enterprise. To capture this important moment in fashion history, I examine the overlooked New York World's Fair archives from the New York Public Library and engage them with secondary research on American fashion history. With the use of digital tools like Voyant and Many Eyes, I aim to visualize the network of the fashion industry actors that joined forces to organize the fashion exhibits at the New York World's Fair of 1939/ 1940 and the changes between the two seasons. By centering my study on the Hall of Fashion and World of Fashion exhibitions at the New York World's Fair of 1939/1940, I explore a disregarded story of the consolidation of the American fashion industry.

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