Fashion and Disease Prevention. July 16, 2020

ABSTRACT

Since April 2020, the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) has asked for people to wear face masks in public to curb the spread of COVID-19. This shift has given rise to a mass movement of cloth mask making. Artists have leapt into action to produce masks for healthcare and frontline workers or as an alternative economy for lost income, while others customize masks to communicate identity, beliefs, or concerns. Mask making has also raised questions about the future of fashion with regards to health and sustainability. Through a series of conversations, experts from the arts, fashion, sustainability, and medical fields were invited to talk about the variety of issues, and questions this moment of mask making and wearing have produced. Accessories, like masks, are just one example of how fashion has been used over time to prevent the spread of disease. Alison Matthews David’s research into the intersections of fashion, medical history, criminology, and occupational health provides a comprehensive context to understand where today’s moment of mask wearing fits into the history of protective dress. © 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.