Autarky and fashion Flashcards
What was the regime trying to do here?
Organised attempt to rid Italian fashion and textiles from foreign influence
The Board of Permanent National Fascist Exhibitions aimed to organise the clothing sector to make sure that the whole cycle of production took place in Italy
The regime also promoted the production of Italian textiles (Autarkic textiles)
Why was the regime trying to do this?
The Abyssinian campaign and sa the subsequent sanctions imposed by the League of Nations, which prevented Italy from exporting any goods, or importing any goods that might be necessary for war, highlighted the need for autarky to M. Even though the sanctions were not actually that economically damaging, they were important as a propaganda and ideological tool to instil national cohesion. It was the reaction to the sanctions, rather than the sanctions themselves, that reshaped the Italian economy and the cultural and technological debate in the second decade of the regime
Thought that Italian fashion had to be separated from foreign, especially French influence
M saw fashion as a fundamental part of the Italian economy and as a powerful and appealing vehicle for the process of modernisation. It could offer domestically and abroad the image of a new Italy and new Italians
How did the regime try and do this?
Legislation tries to regulate Italian fashion output with royal decrees such as the ‘Mark of Guarantee’, which aimed to provide incentives for the production of purely Italian goods
More systematic research into natural and man-made fibres with an aim to substitute the expensive and inadequate raw materials such as silk wool and cotton
The regime subsidised innovative research into textile manufacturing
The regime promoted Italian national fashion; ‘the woman has to follow Italian national fashion’ was the fascist motto
A widespread campaign was built against foreign oppressors who did not consider political expansion legitimate
Scarves and fabrics were produced to celebrate milestones of the regime or to celebrate M’s nationalist speeches. For instance, a scarf was printed to celebrate M’s September 1935 emphasising Italy’s intentions to proceed with the invasion of Ethiopia, or another one when a speech was given declaring war with Ethiopia in October
The regime created the Independent Board of the Permanent National Fascists exhibitions in 1932
The National Board of Fascist Exhibition ran twice annual fashion shows that were aimed to showcase the inventiveness of Italian designers
After the creation of the MNDM, fashion became one of the vehicles through which Italy sought to create, define and promote a national identity for itself
The regime launched the ‘Mark of Guarantee, a label that designers could put on their garments after the relevant permit if regime officials considered them to be originally Italian in their design and use of fabrics
In 1937, textiles were provided with their own mark of guarantee, the ‘Texorit’
In 1939, the Golden Mark was introduced to indicate the most exclusive high fashion creations
Foreign models, especially French ones, were banned from Italian magazines
List the successes of this policy
Subsidised research led to the production of so-called ‘autarkic fabrics’, made out of either natural materials recovered from century old traditions, such as hemp, jute and esparto, or artificial products like rayon or lanital
Turin became the capital of fashion
The textile industry benefitted from the regime’s protectionism, as the consumption of artifical fibres in Italy increased significantly and some produce was exported
Some have considered this period one of creativity for the textile industry. Others have seen it as an opening towards modernity
List the failures of the policy
In 1931, a survey showed that Italy alone absorbed one third of the French fashion exports
The Mark of Guarantee was given out to readily, with often only picture evidence being needed to be provided
The excessive state bureaucracy did not help with putting these measures into practise
Wool production, one of the main parts of the Italian economy, was still reliant on the import of raw materials. Italian cotton production was small, expensive and dependent upon imports from Egypt and Turkey
Autarkic laws were not able to fully change the Italian habit of buying clothes in France
Make an evaluative statement on the success of this policy
The regime succeeded in conveying the symbolic importance of products like Lanital and Rayon and provided a boost to the economy through the expansion and modernisation of the textile industry, it failed to provide Italy with a distinctive style that could rival the French
