Coronavirus may have changed our lives and revolutionised the way we create and present fashion. Yet there are some things that never change. We have the entire world within easy reach thanks to the Internet; we can check out museum collections and leaf through the digitalised contents of libraries or visit exhibitions even when institutions are closed, but, when it comes to inspirations, you often see some ideas - quite often not the best ones - returning collections after collections.
Take the example of Isabel Marant. The French designer was recently at the centre of a case of appropriation regarding pieces from her Autumn/Winter 2020-21 Etoilé collection (but some motifs also appear in the A/W 20 menswear collection). One of the designs included in that collection, a cape, featured stripes and a starburst pattern reminiscent of the jorongos (blanket-like shawls) from the Purépecha communities of Mexico's Michoacán state (with other patterns and embroideries similar to the ones from Tlaxcala, San Luis Potosí and Oaxaca). So Mexican culture Minister Alejandra Frausto wrote to Marant and enquired about her use of indigenous Mexican patterns.
Frausto wondered in her letter why Marant was trying to privatise "collective property" and employing cultural elements that benefit Mexican communities. Marant answered with a letter (undersigned by Marant herself and by brand Chief Executive Officer Anouck Duranteau-Loeper) that Frausto recently published via Twitter.
In the letter Marant apologised and stated the brand focuses on openness towards other cultures and traditions, so she felt sad about the incident as her intention was to pay homage rather than culturally appropriate the design. The designer also announced the company remained at the entire disposal of the Mexican government.
Now, while it is honourable that the company answered the letter, it must also be noted that Isabel Marant is not new to such attacks. The designer included in her Spring/Summer 2015 Étoile collection a blouse that seemed entirely lifted from the 600-year-old traditional dress of the indigenous Mixe community living in the village of Santa Maria Tlahuitoltepec, Oaxaca, southern Mexico.
At the time Oaxacan singer Susana Harp actually brought the issue to attention by tweeting a picture of the blouse and asked to remove the blouse from the collection and pay damages as well. Mexican embroideries returned also in Marant's S/S 2009 collection.
The A/W 20-21 Etoilé collection seems to be an updated version of the S/S 2015 collection and, even though the embroidered blouse is not included in this collection, there are different motifs that prove this was another season heavily inspired by Mexican patterns, embroideries, shapes and styles.
In the past we have seen several other brands that moved from Mexico as an inspiration for their collections, among them also Carolina Herrera, Louis Vuitton, Zara and Mango, but you would expect that those fashion designers and brands criticised once such as Marant would have by now learnt their lessons.
Instead it looks like the process of borrowing and incorporating - in a nutshell of appropriating - the cultural and textile canons of specific populations has returned in Marant's practice and is still trending.
This is damaging on different levels: appropriating means borrowing a motif, separating it from its context and reapplying it in another. It is also not so rare to see specific symbols or patterns usually linked with profound meanings and often preserved thanks to artisans who passed them from generation to generation, being disrespectfully incorporated in commercial pieces that, being produced by high-end brands also have high price points compared to traditional pieces (on Etsy an elaborate jorongo costs less than $100; Marant's designs are definitely more expensive and the cape from the A/W 2020-21 Etoilé collection will set you back $582).
So what can be done to improve things? Well, in the history of fashion, as stated in a previous post, there have been designers who moved from a traditional pattern like a Mexican motif and re-elaborated it (remember Bonnie Cashin's bags?). But in more recent years there has been a new and very welcomed practice: working side by side with specific artisans from other countries, making sure that a collection or some designs from that collection are created respecting the cultural heritage of a community and even helping it financially and socially. In a way this could be a great idea not for the distant future, but something that should be applied sooner rather than later by the fashion industry (there are already quite a few fashion brands who have adopted this modus operandi, something that makes sense also if we think about producing smaller and therefore more sustainable collections).
The issue of borrowing a traditional motif from indigenous communities is not just annoying towards that community, it also falls into the copyright infringement category, and for what regards Mexico there have been politicians who have campaigned to improve and toughen the copyright laws protecting traditional patterns and the collective rights of the Mexican communities. Frausto Guerrero hopes that in future fashion designers will become allies of indigenous populations rather than dangerous competitors, but better copyright laws may help Mexico.
Traditional heritage, including craftsmanship, is protected by the United Nations' Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, but in some cases there are specific acts that protect the rights of indigenous populations. For example, in the United States the Indian Arts and Crafts Act (IACA) of 1990, protects the work of Native American nations. The act was invoked also in relatively recent cases such as the 2012 Navajo Nation lawsuit against Urban Outfitters for products (including the "Navajo Hipster Panty" and "Navajo Hip Flask") that were infringing copyright and violating commercial law (the case settled with a licensing agreement between Urban Outfitters and the Navajo Nation). The Navajo Nation even went on to created an intellectual property department in 2019 that enforces trademarks and facilitate the licensing of its intellectual property.
So while more indigenous populations will probably start working along the same lines and come up with their own intellectual property department, the first step towards eliminating the appropriation issue in fashion is for designers and fashion houses to stop and think before producing a piece that moves from a traditional garment or even launch collaborations with artisans that may bring an added value to contemporary collections.
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