Locating 'the Absent Shadow': Exploring Connections and Encounters in British Menswear

This network is framed by the concerns of the Westminster Menswear Archive (WMA), a unique teaching collection held by the University of Westminster. The collection holds over 2000 menswear garments from 1780 to the present day, primarily focused on post-1940s British men's dress - clothing produced, designed, worn, or retailed in Britain. It includes designer fashion, streetwear, everyday dress, sportswear, workwear, and uniforms. It receives over 800 visitors each year and is utilised for research purposes by students, scholars, and designers in industry. It is modelled on Italian garment archives, particularly the menswear label C.P. Company, founded by designer Massimo Osti. Osti's collection was non-hierarchal, housing military, utilitarian, industrial, and fashion garments together.

The WMA mirrors this approach, directly aiming to overcome the gender and high-fashion biases inherent in most teaching and museum collections of fashion. Menswear, relative to womenswear, is still underexplored in fashion research and exhibitions, despite growing interest in the field exemplified by an increasing number of menswear exhibitions, including Reigning Men (Los Angeles County Museum, 2016), Invisible Men (University of Westminster, 2019) and the forthcoming Dandy Style (Manchester Art Gallery, 2022).

However, scholarship on British menswear has tended to focus on tailoring and tradition; spectacular and dandy style; and London. This network seeks to question these preoccupations by interrogating the fashion practices of the inhabitants of four key cities. Through a series of workshops, the network will bring together academics, curators, designers, retailers, and fashion industry professionals to investigate the links, relationships, and encounters between the local (Liverpool and Manchester), national (London), and international (Milan) menswear industries and communities. These will allow for the development of a framework for expanding to other cities.

Workshop 1
London - Archiving, collecting, and curating British menswear
Tour of the Westminster Menswear Archive. Before the workshop, each participant is invited to engage with the WMA through its online catalogue to select one garment relevant to their research or practice. These will be used as the starting point for discussion of the place of archival collections in researching and creating British menswear.

Workshop 2
Milan - The location of the industrialisation of menswear
Tour of the C.P. Company design studio and archive to examine how it is used to document the company's material culture and the foundation for a research methodology to inform concepts for new menswear outcomes.

Workshop 3
Liverpool - The significance of a port city as a site of cultural exchange
Specialist menswear retailers play an essential role in disseminating new menswear, acting as intermediaries between industry and consumers by curating garments relevant to specific local audiences.

Workshop 4
Manchester - Subculture / Mass Culture: Menswear and Youth Style.
The final workshop will focus on menswear, leisure, and youth cultures, using cross-generational participatory research that invites members of the public to share their narratives of youth style.

The network will innovate in its approach, diversify its collaborative partners, and engage with previously overlooked menswear communities and creators by involving non-academic participants and practitioners, including those outside the fashion industry, and utilising the network's social media platforms for dissemination, feedback, and dialogue. A multidisciplinary approach strengthens the project, with academics from several disciplines such as music, youth studies, fashion design, fashion communication, and history bringing their unique perspectives to light on the network's questions.