Beyond Desire

During an era in which the cultural world is obsessed with issues of globalization, postcolonialism and reparations of historical guilt, the implicit aspect of desire is almost never assessed--until now. Beyond Desire focuses on a desiring dialect between the broad "idea" of Africa, on one hand, and Europe on the other. As a starting point for this book, the essayists asked a series of poignant questions: what happens when different cultures meet, and can that meeting be meaningful? How are attitudes--rather than identities--constructed through appropriation or projection in imagery and visualization? How, in the domain of clothing, for example, does the wearing but also the possession of a certain type of clothing or accessory function as a compensatory strategy for certain failures of society, politics, or development? And, is fashion possibly the site for the negotiation of social relationships, local institutions and transnational connections? Beyond Desire showcases fashion by designers like Christian Dior and John Galliano, and includes fashion photography, African studio photography, art and documentary stills. In these pages, European fashion designers show how they have adopted the embellishments, scarifications, colors and textiles of the Masai tribe, and combined them with elements of Western haute couture. Here, fashion creates fantasy onto which qualities such as seduction, eroticism, exuberance--and desire--are projected. And while the random mixing of ethnic and contemporary elements confirms the cliché of "the other," the radical outcome is both strange and beautiful.