BA2 THEORY CLASS - TEXTILES IN SOCIETY - GANDHI AND KHADI CLOTH GROUP SEMINAR PRESENTATION
GANDHI AND 'KHADI', THE FABRIC OF INDIAN INDEPENDENCE. SUSAN S. BEAN 1989.
WESTERN EXPLOITATION OF ASIAN DESIGN
Gandhi's campaign for 'khadi' was a product of economic nationalism. Gandhi's views on cloth and clothing were unique, but the elements of which they were composed were not. According to the economic nationalists, India's decline was due largely to British destruction of Indian manufactures beginning in the late eighteenth century. Cotton textiles had been India's premier industry. (Bean, 2012, p.237).
News story this week about Paul Smith's Peshawari chappal shoe
Robert shoe (Peshawari chappal), Paul Smith, 2014.
The Peshawari chappal is a leather sandal worn in parts of Pakistan. Paul Smith found it, trimmed the sole with neon pink and named it "Robert". The Robert costs £300; chappals cost £15 or less. No wonder Pakistan's Dawn newspaper this week reported on a petition against this restyling of a classic. Paul Smith now says the shoe is "inspired by the Peshawari chappal" – and no longer calls it Robert. (Cocozza, 2014).
The shoe takes its name from the city of Peshawar,[2] where it originates from, while "chappal" is the local word for flip-flops. Peshawari chappal is worn by men casually or formally, usually with the Shalwar kameez dress. Because of its comfortableness, it is used in place of sandal or slipper in Pakistan. (Wikipedia, 2014).
See the whole article for other examples
http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/shortcuts/2014/mar/11/kaftans-masai-beads-fashion-borrow-ethnic-designs
http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/shortcuts/2014/mar/11/kaftans-masai-beads-fashion-borrow-ethnic-designs
REFERENCES
Bean, S. in Hemmings, J. (ed.) (2012) The textile reader. London: Berg.
Cocozza, P. (2014) From kaftans to Masai beads: unlikely items that became fashion sensations. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/shortcuts/2014/mar/11/kaftans-masai-beads-fashion-borrow-ethnic-designs (Accessed 12 March 2014).
Wikipedia (2014) Peshawari chappal. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshawari_chappal (Accessed 13 March 2014).
Bean, S. in Hemmings, J. (ed.) (2012) The textile reader. London: Berg.
Cocozza, P. (2014) From kaftans to Masai beads: unlikely items that became fashion sensations. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/shortcuts/2014/mar/11/kaftans-masai-beads-fashion-borrow-ethnic-designs (Accessed 12 March 2014).
Wikipedia (2014) Peshawari chappal. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peshawari_chappal (Accessed 13 March 2014).
