Alison Matthews David

Fellowship Year: 

2004

Project Title: 

Seeing is Deceiving: Camouflage, Concealing Colouration and Fashion in WWI

Dr. Matthews David’s research explored the impact that WWI had on the relationships between fashionable dress, textile technologies, and public perception of the idea of camouflage. She studied garments and textiles from the ROM’s collection originating from France, Britain, and Canada in order to provide a thorough historical context for early camouflage as it relates to fashion and clothing, exploring themes of visibility and invisibility. 

About the Fellow: 

Dr. Matthews David received her PhD in Art History from Stanford University for her thesis “Cutting a Figure: Tailoring, Technology and Social Identity in 19th Century Paris.” During her fellowship, she was a lecturer at the Centre for the History of Textiles and Dress at the Winchester School of Art, University of Southampton. Currently, she is an Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director at the School of Fashion, Ryerson University.

Related Publications: 

Matthews David, Alison. “Fashion’s Chameleons: Camouflage, “Conspicuousness,” and Gendered Display during WWI,” in The Spaces and Places of Fashion, ed. John Potvin, (Routledge, 2009), 89-107.

Authored by: Kait Sykes

Authored by: Kait Sykes