The Vestoj Manifesto
- All articles must relate to sartorial issues. We are interested in people’s relationship to their clothes, and fashion’s relationship to identity.
- We must bridge academia and industry. We will place academia and industry side by side, and give equal significance to both. We will place the academic in an industry context and vice versa in order to increase the understanding and collaboration between these two fields. We will work for the greater good of our discipline.
- We are as much part of the fashion industry as we are of the academic world and will work actively to dismantle any preconceived ideas or prejudice that may exist between these two fields.
- Fashion must always be taken seriously. We must never be afraid to have pretensions. We are as interested in the minutiae of clothing as we are in the grand themes of fashion. We will see the trivial in the substantial and the substantial in the trivial, and ensure that all is given equal importance.
- The tone must be inviting. We must never be excluding in language or approach. We will use humour to draw readers in and themes that many can relate to.
- Text and image shall be given equal importance. We must always integrate word and picture and guarantee that there is an ongoing dialogue between the two.
- Everything shall be questioned – nothing is holy. We must challenge the status quo. We must always ask why.
- We must always remain independent in thought and action. We must actively encourage critical thought and never be satisfied until we have examined every theme intrepidly. We will keenly promote criticism and draw attention to the paradoxes within the fashion world.
- We commit to always featuring what we want to show, rather than what we have been told to. The focus will always be on the garments rather than their brands. Hence we will work without advertising and clothing credits.
- We will have an inter-disciplinary approach. We will take care to examine each theme from various angles and make certain that we represent other lifestyles and ethos than our own.
Category: Uncategorized 5 comments »
December 8th, 2009 at 1:48 pm
Paragraph 2 and 3 might be the best things said about fashion this year!
February 9th, 2010 at 2:46 pm
[...] For me, the lavish first edition of VESTOJ came complete with a statement by cult singer Lydia Lunch (of whom I hereby suggest the ideal soundtrack for this post) and a bold manifesto that one may consult online, on VESTOJ’s blog. [...]
April 9th, 2010 at 12:13 am
Thanks for keeping great posts!
May 5th, 2010 at 5:45 pm
Can you provide more information on this? take care
May 16th, 2010 at 12:16 am
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