Papers by Malcolm Barnard
The essay introduces the sender/receiver model of communication and fashion communication by revi... more The essay introduces the sender/receiver model of communication and fashion communication by reviewing cultural studies and recent fashion journalism references to it. The essay argues that there are three major problems with this model. It then introduces and critiques various arguments around the cyborg, a human/machine "hybrid" as some theorists present it, and argues that there are limitations and weaknesses in the conception of the prosthesis as it is found in the notion of the cyborg. The essay then analyses semiological models of communication and uses Derrida's (2010) conception of the constitutive prosthesis to critique both traditional conceptions of the prosthesis and the model of communication as it is found in semiological models. Finally, the essay identifies some major consequences of the constitutive prosthesis for fashion and the explanation of fashion as communication. Consequently, the first section will introduce the sender/receiver model of communication and of fashion communication by mentioning the origins of the sender/receiver theory and by reviewing some recent fashion journalism. The second section will explain the sender/receiver model in a little more detail and outline the three major problems with this model. It will use the explanation to introduce David Gunkel's (2000) arguments around the cyborg, a human/machine "hybrid" as he has it, and to present some limitations and weaknesses in the conception of the prosthesis as he uses it in the notion of the cyborg. The third section will move on to semiological models of communication and use Derrida's (2010) conception of the constitutive prosthesis to critique both Gunkel's conception of the cyborg and the model of communication as it is found in semiological models. Finally, the consequences of the constitutive prosthesis for fashion and the explanation of fashion as communication will be explained. Cultural Studies and Fashion Journalism Fashion understood as the sending and receiving of messages is a staple of both cultural studies and fashion journalism. In addition to Hall and Campbell, mentioned above, Doug Kellner's (1995) essay on Madonna's changing styles rests uneasily between meanings being constructed and messages being sent (Kellner 1995: 268). Jennifer Craik's (1994) book also notes the peculiarity of the status of fashion messages, using McCracken's (1990) critique of the sender receiver model to argue that clothing is a peculiar kind of code in that it 'specified not only the components of the message but also the messages themselves' (Craik 1994: 9-10). Becky Conekin's essay on masculinity relies on the notion of messages to explain masculinity as a style (Conekin 2000). And Flavia Loscialpo's 2019 essay on fashion and immigrants argues that certain high street fashion brands in the U.K. sent 'proimmigration messages' following the Brexit vote in 2016 (Loscialpo 2019: 619). There may be complications in the basic sender/receiver theory, the theory may have become more sophisticated, and there have certainly been developments in the theory since 1948 but the essential elements-of a message that is therefore sent and received by a sender and a receiver-are still there. Fashion journalists also appear to love nothing more than to identify and explain the messages sent by either people or the things they wear. They love it even more if they can describe the messages as 'secret" or "hidden". Lucy Clarke, in the Australian edition of Vogue, made claims regarding the messages sent by the wardrobe of the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, during her Royal Tour of 2018. What the Duchess wore sent a "powerful message". In fact it seems that there was a series of these powerful messages: her Outland Denim jeans sent an economic message about globalisation and fair trade and her Rothy's shoes sent an environmental message about sustainability (Clarke 2018). Also in 2018, the BBC news website reported how Melania Trump said that her Zara parka, worn to a detention centre for refugee children in Texas in June 2018 was "a kind of message". As a diligent and conscientious communication studies student, Melania herself explicitly identified what she wore as "a kind of message": she also identified the receiver to whom the message was being sent as "the left wing media who are criticising me". And finally, she was clear on what the message was: she said that the message sent was "I don"t care" (BBC 2018). Widely available print and online press photographs showed that her parka had the words "I REALLY DON"T CARE DO U?" written in white uppercase on the back and clearly visible as she was ushered into an armoured car at the Air Force base.
The essay argues that documentary and rhetorical functions of photography are present in all phot... more The essay argues that documentary and rhetorical functions of photography are present in all photographs. Thus to every advertising, or rhetorical photograph there is a documentary element. And to every documentary photograph, there is a rhetorical element. This argument is constructed by following Derrida and showing how the punctum (as found in the work of Roland Barthes) is actually not a point and that because it is not a point, the documentary function is not the only function: culture and therefore persuasive and rhetorical elements can now ‘get in’ to the photograph.
One of the meanings or senses of 'in touch' in English is 'in communication'. We ... more One of the meanings or senses of 'in touch' in English is 'in communication'. We talk of being 'in touch' with someone, meaning that we know them and that we are in communication with them. We also speak of being 'out of touch' with someone, meaning that we are not in contact with them, that we are not communicating with them. And we talk of being 'put in touch' with someone: this usually means that a third party has made contact or established communications on our behalf, between us and someone else. Sometimes, sadly, we talk of 'losing touch' with someone, meaning that we were in contact with someone, maybe through Christmas cards or WhatsApp but are no longer in communication with them.
Approaches to Understanding Visual Culture
Approaches to Understanding Visual Culture
The Bloomsbury Encyclopedia of Design
The Bloomsbury Encyclopedia of Design
Over the last forty years or so academic interest in fashion has burgeoned, and, since the 1970s ... more Over the last forty years or so academic interest in fashion has burgeoned, and, since the 1970s at least, attempts to define, analyse, and critically explain fashion phenomena have become vital areas of research and study in almost all disciplines within the humanities and social sciences. As serious academic work on and around the theory and practice of fashion continues to flourish as never before, this new title in the Routledge Major Works series, Critical Concepts in Media and Cultural Studies, meets the need for an authoritative reference work to make sense of a rapidly growing and ever more complex corpus of literature, and to provide a map of the area as it has emerged and developed. It is a landmark collection of foundational and the best cutting-edge scholarship in the field and is organized in four volumes. What is meant by fashion? Volume I provides a conspectus of some of the most important definitions and philosophies of fashion. The philosophical sources of the vario...
Ovaj udžbenik obuhvaca teme koje se obrađuju unutar kolegija Graficki dizajn te ih povezuje sa sr... more Ovaj udžbenik obuhvaca teme koje se obrađuju unutar kolegija Graficki dizajn te ih povezuje sa srodnim temama da bi studenti sto jednostavnije uvidjeli kontekst u kojem se graficki dizajner kao kreativac na tržistu nalazi. U drugom poglavlju se definira graficki dizajn, objasnjava se sto je to dizajn usmjeren korisnicima i dizajn kao djelatnost. U trecem poglavlju se istražuje uloga dizajnera dok se u cetvrtom poglavlju povezuje graficki dizajn i racunalna grafika. Peto poglavlje obrađuje podrucje prezentacije dizajnerskih rjesenja. Sesto poglavlje prosiruje temu na podrucje brandinga i ulogu brandova u suvremenoj komunikaciji. Sedmo je poglavlje verbalni identitet s potpoglavljima: ime branda i slogan. Na to se nastavlja poglavlje vizualni identitet s potpoglavljima: logo, sustav boja i tipografija. Zavrsno deveto poglavlje obrađuje temu kriterija ocjenjivanja grafickog dizajna.
Fashion and clothing construct, reproduce and challenge all kinds of identity and they do so visu... more Fashion and clothing construct, reproduce and challenge all kinds of identity and they do so visually and immediately. The meanings of the visual here, the meanings of what people are wearing, are quickly learned and readily understood by all members of all cultures: learning and understanding those meanings may even be said to be the conditions for membership of those cultures. So, for example within seconds of seeing or meeting someone we make a series of judgements concerning identity and culture, about who they are and whether we will have anything in common with them, on the basis of what they are wearing. Rarely, if ever, do we wonder what people mean by the things they wear or dismiss garments as meaningless: meaning and identity are constructed, negotiated and understood constantly in visual fashion. The centrality of fashion and clothing to the concerns of this collection (the concern with visuality, meaning, identity, society and culture), should nor need emphasizing. Soci...
Uploads
Papers by Malcolm Barnard