ALL clothes are handmade
Workers in Bangladesh have shut down production for top fashion brands including Levi's, H&M, Zara, Gap, and more. Bangladesh's 3,500 garment factories account for around 85% of the country's exports. But conditions for workers, almost all of whom are women, are dire. Monthly wages start at $75. Workers are striking for fairer pay and better conditions.
In episode 71 of The Great Women Artists Podcast, Katy Hessel interviews the acclaimed writer, fashion critic, and art curator, Charlie Porter on Louise Bourgeois, Anne Truitt, Sarah Lucas and Martine Syms !!!!!!
[This episode is brought to you by Alighieri jewellery: www.alighieri.co.uk | use the code TGWA at checkout for 10% off!]
In this episode, which will work slightly differently from normal, we will focus on four artists mentioned in Charlie's latest book, one of my favourite books of this year: What Artists Wear!!! An incredibly fascinating book that chronicles the lives and careers of artists through their clothes and how they have worn, incorporated, used, recycled, referenced, and drawn from garments from the early 20th century to the present day.
From chapters dedicated to Louise Bourgeois and Martine Syms, an in-depth look into the history of the suit (think Frida Kahlo to Georgia O’Keeffe); a focus on the subject of workwear with the likes of Agnes Martin and Barbara Hepworth, and how they dressed ‘for the studio’. What ‘casual’ means today, how artists have worn jeans, how they integrate clothing for performance or made ‘wearable art’, to those who use garments as their chosen medium or for acts of transformation.
This book, for me, provided such a rich, fascinating insight into artists and their work, mostly for the reason that it offered an alternative viewpoint. Never has something made me think so deeply about how artists presented themselves, and in effect our own identities, but also how clothing has been used in art in so many different ways, circumstances, and for so many different reasons. ENJOY!!!!!!
A visiting lecturer in fashion at the University of Westminster, Charlie is one of the leading cultural commentators of our time and has been described as one of the most influential fashion journalists of his generation, with many of his garments now in the collection of the V&A.
Further links:
www.penguin.co.uk/books/314/314590…0and%20at%20play. lismorecastlearts.ie/read-watch-lis…the-exhibition
LISTEN NOW + ENJOY!!!
Follow us: Katy Hessel: @thegreatwomenartists / @katy.hessel Sound editing by Nada Smiljanic Sound recording by Amber Miller Artwork by @thisisaliceskinner Music by Ben Wetherfield
“Working in the garments industry means that I don’t have to depend on my family,” Bobita said. “Women like me are independent and we don’t have to suffer abuse by our husbands or in laws. But we deserve living wages.”
A 2017 report by Deloitte Access Economics for Oxfam Australia shows that on average, only 2% to 4% of the price of a piece of clothing sold in Australia goes toward factory workers in Bangladesh, Vietnam and other garment production countries.
“Brands are instructing the factory owners to talk to the workers [to stop the protests] but no one is saying, fine, we’ll increase our rates,” explains Nazma. “Everyone is looking out for themselves, and what the workers are getting is actually not a living wage.”
The FLA report states that a key building block for better working conditions is more visibility. Brands should make sure workers and the public know which factories are producing for which brands. More and more companies are now disclosing where there factories are, but a vast majority of the industry, including many fast-fashion leaders, still do not publicly disclose which factories produce their branded clothes. Among them is Inditex, the company that owns ZARA — who Bobita sews jeans for.
