Course summary

The MA Historical Costume course engages the student in the potential of performance design and garment construction to explore complex ideas; some of which could stray into other areas of artistic experimentation. Students may come to the course with a background in costume, fashion, textiles or theatre/performance design or may have studied subjects from across the humanities including arts and performance. This masters programme supports and encourages the student to investigate individual practice within an interdisciplinary framework, whilst developing a critical theoretical context for their work. The very special and unique nature of course delivery, through shared lectures, seminars, critiques and tutorials encourages both a ‘freewheeling’ atmosphere as well as an intense immersion in creative practice. Whether students are interested in looking at historical influences or current socio-political issues related to dress, students will challenge the context of their study in design or historical costume construction within the broader framework of contemporary practice. The course is supported by lectures and seminars in areas of dress history, construction and design to enable students to critically reflect on, and to consider the place of their practice within the discipline. Seminar discussion with a diverse range of artists will invite critique of students’ work. The intense testing of work and practice in a challenging but safe arena is a particular element of the MA programme and an innate strength of the learning process that is engendered at the Graduate School. MA Historical Costume is designed to enable the student to follow their research interests whether that interest lies in historical costume construction or performance design. Working with students and staff from across a breadth of MA disciplines students will enrich the wider post-graduate dynamic at AUB with the individual experience and graduate expertise they bring with them. The first unit of study Strategies for Practice: Identification allows for investigation into the specific area of study, which will involve research in the area of costume history that will be the focus of the following units of study. As students’ progress through the Strategies for Practice: Identification unit they will be expected to choose and connect with a theme and exploit its interpretation and potential to inform the direction of their Masters’ Project 1 and 2.