Kate Strasdin To Talk About the History of Underwear


The Arts Society South West London November lecture

Late 19th century corset
Late 19th century corset. Picture: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The next lecture to be presented by The Art Society South West London will be on the history of underwear form the 18th Century to the 20th century.

In ‘The Foundations of Fashion’, Kate Strasdin looks at how those foundations have evolved to create the silhouettes that shaped generations of men and women.

It is a story of cutting edge technologies, and looks at men and women alike from the girdle to the Y-front, the chemise to the stocking. In an era where we rely less on foundation garments and more on diet, it is easy to forget how central these garments were to everyday life.

Christian Dior said, “Without foundations there can be no fashion.”

Kate Strasdin is a curator and writer in the field of historic dress and textiles. She is a senior Lecturer in Cultural Studies at Falmouth University and a Specialist Visiting Lecturer at the DeTao Masters Academy in Shanghai. Kate’s first book, ‘Inside the Royal Wardrobe – A Dress History of Queen Alexandra’ was published by Bloomsbury in 2017 and her second book about a 19th century dress diary will be published next year.

The lecture takes place on Monday 14 November at Dryburgh Hall in Putney Leisure Centre and will be preceded by the Arts Society SW London's AGM.

If you have never attended an Arts Society lecture before you are urged to come along and find out about your local Arts Society.

For more information visit the society’s website.

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October 14, 2022