This course looks at the social construction of “New York Fashion” as an aesthetic style, practice, imaginary and industry, as well as a place in the global fashion world. Exploring its meanings through discourse, material culture, image and film, we will treat “New York Fashion” as an object of inquiry whose meanings are continuously produced, negotiated, and defined. Some topics of discussion include the city’s rise as a fashion capital, it’s cultural politics with a Parisian regime, debates between high culture and mass fashion, and the transformations to its cultural geography, styles, and streets. Students will examine the connections between New York-based designers, culture industries (ex. modeling), varying fashion institutions (ex. museums, education), media and technology - social forces that powerfully shape the cultural and political economic significance of New York to a greater globalized world. With ample opportunity to explore the city, students will be required to carry out research projects on fashion within the "field" of "New York."