Conceptual Fashion
Where Do the Words to Speak About Clothing Come From?
'Words to speak about clothing' refers to the vocabulary and expressions used to describe, critique, and share fashion. 'Where do they come from?' asks from which layers — designer's intent, wearer's experience, media, history, or culture — these words emerge. Conceptual fashion often poses 'new questions' that existing language cannot fully capture, but where do we source the words to speak them? Through this question, we explore the origins and limits of fashion criticism language, and the relationship between body and language.
Words to speak about clothing first arise from bodily experience. Words are added afterward; bodily sensation is the essence.
The meaning of clothing is constituted by words. Bodily experience only becomes 'meaning' once it is verbalized.
Words to speak about clothing arise from history, culture, and media. Socially shared vocabulary takes precedence over individual experience.
The bodily and visual experience of clothing cannot be fully spoken with existing words. New questions require the creation of new words.
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Please try to express the clothing you are wearing today in words. Where did those words come from?
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Do you sometimes feel that clothing is 'beyond words' when speaking about it? Where do you think that sensation comes from?
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Do you think the words of fashion magazines or critics convey the 'true feeling' of clothing?
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Have you ever wanted to create new words to speak about clothing? What kind of words would you like to create?
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Do you think it is difficult or possible to convey the 'texture' or 'comfort' of clothing in words?
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If all words to speak about clothing were lost, how do you think you would 'speak' about clothing?
This theme considers the sources and limits of words for speaking about clothing. It is a space for dialogue exploring how to share sensations that cannot be put into words.
- Vocabulary
- The collection of words used to describe and critique clothing. A linguistic resource shared by designers, critics, wearers, and media.
- Bodily Language
- 'Unsayable' meaning conveyed through the act of wearing, bodily movement, and tactile sensation. Complements aspects that existing vocabulary cannot fully capture.
- Critical Language
- Specialized vocabulary for analyzing and evaluating fashion. Arises from historical and theoretical contexts but carries the risk of reducing bodily experience.
- Cultural Code
- The implicit meaning clothing holds within a specific culture. Jeans = casual, black = mourning, etc. The social context that makes absence of concept difficult.
- Untranslatability
- The property that the bodily and visual experience of clothing cannot be fully translated into words. A characteristic of the 'new questions' posed by conceptual fashion.
- Degree Zero
- Roland Barthes' concept of 'degree zero.' The ideal state where clothing says nothing. Suggests the possibility of concept-less clothing.
Please try to express the clothing you are wearing today in one word. Where did that word come from?
If all words to speak about clothing disappeared from this world, how do you think you would 'speak' about clothing?
Looking at the other person's clothing, try expressing 'the feeling of this garment' not with words but through bodily movement or silence.
- Is it possible or impossible to convey the 'texture' of clothing in words?
- Do the words of fashion criticism reduce the 'true feeling' of clothing?
- Do new questions in fashion require the creation of new words?
- When words to speak about clothing are lost, how does a person 'speak' about clothing?
- How do words to speak about AI-generated clothing differ from words created by humans?
- Have there been eras or cultures in history where 'words to speak about clothing' did not exist?