Walking the Catwalk: From Dressed Body to Dressed Embodiment

Studies on the relationship between body and dress have merely scratched the surface of the lived experience and bodily practice of dress. I argue for moving beyond the “dressed body” towards “dressed embodiment” by complementing analyses of representation and discourse with research on bodily practice and bodily experience. An important starting point for such an endeavor is the notion of “body techniques” and its relation to the concept of “habitus” as developed by Mauss, Bourdieu, and Crossley. Using an ethnographic study of fashion models learning and performing the high-heeled catwalk in New York City, the negotiation between body and dress is fleshed out in detail. By analyzing how the catwalk is articulated, transmitted, and performed by catwalk coaches as well as by models in specific socio-material contexts, the interaction between dress, technique, and sociality is highlighted as an embodied practice that relates to the performance of gender and esthetic labor. These findings suggest how Fashion Studies can employ a more embodied approach both to the study of dress and to the development of a more dynamic and sensual understanding of identity.