In today's cancel-culture people are quick to react online and call out fashion brands or celebrities who seem to be appropriating other cultures. When a problematic launch happens in the fashion industry it will normally be discussed and critiqued online and therefore the brand gets a lot of publicity. You could question if it has become a strategy for brands; all press is good press. Does cancel culture actually work in favor of big brands, because they end up getting more publicity as a result of controversy? You could furthermore question fashion brands' creative process in which designers appropriate instead of drawing inspiration from and appreciating cultures by including and praising them.
The term cultural appropriation appears in many discourses regarding the fashion industry and indicates how powerful and privileged fashion brands/organizations appropriate and misuse designs as well as symbols from marginalized groups or other cultures. It can be interpreted as a positive thing that brands praise marginalized cultures in their designs, but it can also be interpreted as the white upper class exploiting the fashion and aesthetics of other cultures which often have a symbolic or religious meaning. Cultural appropriation illuminates the white western domination and exploitation of culture at the expense of everyone else. (Ayres, 2017)
(Radnofsky, 2021)
An example of this is seen in the picture above of the Louis Vuitton scarf that imitates the keffiyeh scarf, which is a traditional item in Palestine where it is seen as a symbol of Palestinian nationalism and solidarity (Torstrick, 2004, s. 117). Unfortunately, the colors that LV chose for their scarf can be related to Israel where the national flag is blue and white instead of the Palestinian flags’ colors which are red, green, and black. This raises an issue because of the historical oppression of Palestinian culture and the territorial conflict between the two nations.
This scarf and the issues surrounding it illuminate the fact that LV may not have done the proper research regarding the historical artifact; keffiyeh. The reason for this could be that LV didn't have enough time in their creative process while designing this scarf. Many fashion brands have to launch seasonal collections at a very fast pace which means the time spent on the creative process of each item can be very limited. So should you blame the fast industry and the huge pressure that is put on the designers? Would it have been easier to create an original and creative scarf if there had been less pressure on the designers to produce a whole collection in a short amount of time?
As seen in the second picture, the keffiyeh scarf is typically black and white. It’s an easily accessible and inexpensive item in Palestine. Contrary to this the LV scarf which costs $705 and has the LV monogram in the pattern but there are only a few differences in the aesthetics between the LV scarf and a traditional Keffiyeh (Radnofsky, 2021). This can on one hand be interpreted as LV “ripping off” the design and selling it for a much higher price, but it could also be interpreted as praise and appreciation for the Palestinian culture by honoring their traditional scarf. But how could LV show more appreciation and solidarity for Palestinian culture in the design process and diffusion of this scarf?
One way of executing cultural appreciation instead of appropriation could be by actually involving yourself with people from the given culture. As an example, LV could make a collaboration with a Palestinian brand, factory, or spokesperson in the making of this scarf. Another way of executing appreciation and showing solidarity with Palestine is to donate a percentage of the profits to a charity organization or movement that supports the people of Palestine. The mediation of the scarf could also be more appreciated by using a Palestinian model or making a campaign celebrating their culture instead of only using a white model. This could attract good press which would strengthen the brand instead of bad press which in today’s cancel culture arguably does more harm than good.
When big brands launch collections, they will sometimes have items that do not sell or can otherwise be described as flops. Can the flops within the collections be referred to as examples of the pressure in the fashion industry? Esteemed designers are sometimes creative directors for multiple brands and have to create several collections which could “suck them dry of creativity” and perhaps result in these so-called flops? It’s a big honor working for a big fashion house while also having your own brands, but is it for the joy of creating for creativity's sake or because of capitalism?
Conclusion
The creative process can be time-consuming and should be joyful, inspiring, and mentally healthy (Rao, 2018 s. 10, 21). As discussed previously, Louis Vuitton might not have put a lot of time and effort into the creative process of this scarf. If the creative process was more inspiring and reflective, the scarf could possibly have been more original rather than looking very similar to the keffiyeh scarf. LV could also have been investing more time into the project and perhaps make a collaboration with a spokesperson or organization that is a part of Palestinian culture for them to be more appreciative and honoring of the culture they have chosen to reference with this scarf.
What LV essentially did was create an item only for the privileged people, that only they can afford, that imitates an artifact that is accessible to everyone in Palestine. Capitalism warps fashion and design and makes it not about the best of human creativity but it turns into providing for the market. Brands like LV should, instead of focusing on the end goal; of making a profit, focus on the creative process of each item. This could be beneficial because each item in the collections would then possibly possess more meaning, creativity, or appreciation. Of course, you could critique Louis Vuitton for their lack of insight with this scarf and the symbolism it possesses, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that brand itself is trying to do harm in their launch of this scarf because in other collections they do show appreciation of other cultures. The fashion industry and its high expectations for designers to create a huge amount of designs in a short period are significant factors in this issue.
References
Ayres, J. (2017). Inspiration or prototype? Appropriation and exploitation in the fashion industry. Fashion, Style & Popular Culture. [Article]. Intellect Ltd
Rao, S. (2018). An Audience of One: Reclaiming Creativity for Its Own Sake. New York: Portfolio/Penguin
Radnofsky, C. et al. (2021). Louis Vuitton was slammed for selling keffiyeh-style scarf. [Website]. Located the 29/10-2021 on https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/louis-vuitton-slammed-selling-keffiyeh-style-scarf-n1269629
Torstrick, R. (2004). Culture and Customs of Isreal. Greenwood Publishing.