Snapshot: Russian constructivism in dress and textiles

Constructivism was embedded in immense political and social changes brought about by the Bolshevik Revolution. Its appearance in 1919 resulted from the merger of two parallel but very different artistic movements: futurism and proletkult. While futurism rebelled against bourgeois culture and lifestyle in a series of anarchistic practices, proletkult was a politically motivated mass movement that promoted a separate culture for the proletariat. In this context, for the constructivists, fashion was a part of the petit-bourgeois prerevolutionary culture named byt. In prerevolutionary Russia, fashion was exclusively identified with the extravagant and expensive dresses of Western origin, made from lace and feathers, silk and velvet. In a country where the destitute masses dressed in cheap and often ragged traditional or secondhand clothes, fashionable dress that only the rich could afford accentuated class and social differences. Close politically to the Bolshevik project, the constructivists were particularly fierce in their critique of fashion.

The Berg Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion explores, in 760 articles and 3.6 million words, the dressed and adorned body across cultures and throughout history. Lavishly illustrated with over 2,000 images, it is essential for all students, scholars and practitioners of fashion and textiles, across disciplines. Available in print - as a 10 volume set - and online within the Berg Fashion Library. The Encyclopedia provides:

In-depth original articles - from over 600 international experts - on countries, themes, cultural groups, and dress types

Special articles on sources and evidence for each major geographical area

'Snapshot' articles featuring illuminating examples and case studies · Invaluable bibliographies and suggestions for further reading for each article

Cross-references and an analytical cumulative index