Episodes

Friday Nov 01, 2024
Alexander McQueen: Unseen | Fashion Culture
Friday Nov 01, 2024
Friday Nov 01, 2024
“I think there's something quite magical about when you're backstage. And it's not quite seeing behind the magician's curtain, it's more like you know seeing the play from the inside out I guess? ... [McQueen's] backstage was so different to other shows. He was totally hands-on ... and he was involved in everything. He was totally focused and the same obviously was true of all his staff and the interns," explains Alexander McQueen enthusiast John Matheson.
Alexander McQueen’s spectacular shows were full of extraordinary moments and people. In this podcast episode, author and photographer Robert Fairer discusses McQueen’s runway shows with writer and consultant John Matheson (of Instagram's @McQueen_Vault). The 2021 conversation, moderated by MFIT’s senior curator of education Tanya Melendez-Escalante, addressed Fairer's book, "Alexander McQueen: Unseen." Fairer was Vogue's backstage fashion photographer for more than a decade and an integral part of the whirl of activity behind the scenes.
Watch the full video with captions on YouTube.
The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only museum dedicated exclusively to the art of fashion in New York City. https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum

Tuesday Sep 03, 2024
Africa's Fashion Diaspora | Fashion Culture
Tuesday Sep 03, 2024
Tuesday Sep 03, 2024
The Museum at FIT's Associate Curator of Costume Elizabeth Way sits down with Digital Media Manager Tamsen Young to discuss Africa’s Fashion Diaspora. From past exhibitions to featured designers and objects, Way shares her inspiration and process for curating the exhibition. Together, they delve into the central themes of Africa’s Fashion Diaspora and introduce listeners to the exhibition’s world of diasporic crossings.
Africa’s Fashion Diaspora is on view from September 18 - December 29, 2024.
The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only museum dedicated exclusively to the art of fashion in New York City. https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum
Image: Mme. Willie Posey, two-piece rayon set in zebra and leopard print, c. 1970, USA, museum purchase

Thursday Feb 01, 2024
Stella Jean in Conversation with Dr. Valerie Steele | Fashion Culture
Thursday Feb 01, 2024
Thursday Feb 01, 2024
Watch the full video with captions on YouTube.
The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only museum dedicated exclusively to the art of fashion in New York City. https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum

Friday Sep 01, 2023
Gabriela Hearst in conversation with Valerie Steele | Fashion Culture
Friday Sep 01, 2023
Friday Sep 01, 2023
Recorded in 2021, Uruguayan-born fashion designer Gabriela Hearst takes a stroll down memory lane with Dr. Valerie Steele as they discuss how growing up on the family ranch influenced Hearst’s designs as well as how she rolled out not one but three collections during the pandemic.
She is the winner of the 2016/2017 International Woolmark Prize for Womenswear, the 2020 CFDA American Womenswear Designer of the Year Award, and the recipient of the 2023 Couture Council Award for Artistry of Fashion.
(Recorded October 4, 2021)
Watch the full video with captions on YouTube.
The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only museum dedicated exclusively to the art of fashion in New York City. https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum

Monday Jul 31, 2023
Fashion is Spinach: The Life and Work of Elizabeth Hawes | Fashion Culture
Monday Jul 31, 2023
Monday Jul 31, 2023
Elizabeth Hawes is known for her timeless fashion designs and her written critique of the fashion system, such as in her 1940 book Fashion is Spinach. In this conversation moderated by author and podcaster April Calahan, professors and fashion historians Lourdes Font (FIT) and Francesca Granata (The New School) discuss the importance of Hawes in American fashion. She was an American designer, author, labor organizer, and social critic whose ideas many praise to be decades before her time. Over the course of her career, Hawes questioned the division between menswear and womenswear, advocated for what we call today “slow fashion", designed elegant yet practical pieces, and sought to reform working conditions in the fashion industry.
(Recorded March 7, 2023)
Watch the full video with captions on YouTube.
The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only museum dedicated exclusively to the art of fashion in New York City. https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum

Thursday Jul 01, 2021
Zandra Rhodes: 50 Fabulous Years in Fashion | Fashion Culture
Thursday Jul 01, 2021
Thursday Jul 01, 2021
Watch the full video with captions on YouTube.
The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only museum dedicated exclusively to the art of fashion in New York City. https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum

Monday Mar 01, 2021
Lauren Fay in Conversation with Ronald van der Kemp | Fashion Culture
Monday Mar 01, 2021
Monday Mar 01, 2021
Couture designer Ronald van der Kemp and The New Fashion Initiative founder Lauren B. Fay discuss van der Kemp's career and his devotion to craftsmanship, upcycling and reducing waste in fashion.
Ronald van der Kemp is a Dutch fashion designer and founder of demi-couture fashion house RVDK, his namesake label, which shows at Paris Couture week and uses exclusively upcycled fabric. Lauren Fay has spent her career committed to improving sustainability, transparency and accountability in the fashion industry. The New Fashion Initiative (TNFI) was born out of a need to create a more collaborative and interdisciplinary approach to fashion and brings together brands, nonprofits and academics to educate future industry leaders.
Watch the full video with captions on YouTube.
The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only museum dedicated exclusively to the art of fashion in New York City. https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum

Monday Feb 01, 2021
Jeffrey Gibson and Korina Emmerich in Conversation | Fashion Culture
Monday Feb 01, 2021
Monday Feb 01, 2021
On November 5, 2022, Regan de Loggans (Mississippi Choctaw) moderated a conversation with Jeffrey Gibson and Korina Emmerich. Each discussed their experience working as Native Americans in creative industries, weaving in current issues of diversity and sustainability. Gibson is an award-winning Choctaw-Cherokee artist, whose work combines traditional Native American elements with contemporary references. Emmerich is the founder of EMME, a fashion brand, which reflects her indigenous heritage stemming from the Coast Salish territory, Puyallup tribe.
Watch the full video with captions on YouTube.
The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only museum dedicated exclusively to the art of fashion in New York City. https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum

Wednesday Dec 02, 2020
Prabal Gurung in conversation with Valerie Steele | Fashion Culture
Wednesday Dec 02, 2020
Wednesday Dec 02, 2020
On September 15, 2020, Fashion designer Prabal Gurung and MFIT Director Valerie Steele discussed the designer's innovative and international career. With over 80 percent of his collections made in New York, Gurung is committed to sustaining domestic employment, income, and production. His family’s Shikshya Foundation Nepal provides education to children to impact his country’s future.
Watch the full video with captions on YouTube.
The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only museum dedicated exclusively to the art of fashion in New York City. https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum

Thursday Oct 01, 2020
Mexican Rose | Fashion Culture
Thursday Oct 01, 2020
Thursday Oct 01, 2020
For The Museum at FIT's Pink Symposium, Tanya Melendez-Escalante, MFIT senior curator of education and public program, explored the history of the color “Mexican pink” and how it has been used by fashion designers and architects from Mexico.
Watch the full video with captions on YouTube.
The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only museum dedicated exclusively to the art of fashion in New York City. https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum