Conversation with a Curator: Elizabeth Way on ‘Africa’s Fashion Diaspora’
AuthorAdministratorREG_DATE2024.09.23Hits113
The Museum at FIT recently opened a groundbreaking exhibition that looks at the African diaspora through a fashion lens. The museum’s associate curator of costume, Elizabeth Way, conceived of this show, Africa’s Fashion Diaspora, and selected the pieces that are on display. Newsroom spoke with the exhibition curator about how the show approaches Black identity, what visitors should look for, and how they can extend their knowledge.
Newsroom: How is this show different from other fashion exhibitions with a focus on Africa?
Elizabeth Way:Africa’s Fashion Diaspora is a focused exhibition that looks at how Black fashion designers from across the diaspora are contributing to transnational conversations on modern Black identity. Philosophers and politicians have called these ideas Pan-Africanism, Black Consciousness, Négritude, and even Afrofuturism. This exhibition acknowledges fashion’s crucial role in expressing Black identity across national boundaries.