A Stretch of the Imagination: Speculative Design, Performance Fabrics, and the Space Race

During the Cold War, rival superpowers the USA and the USSR vied with one another for world dominion in many arenas: military, diplomatic, and even haute coture. In the latter connection, French designers played arbiter, judging the synthetic textiles developed under capitalist and communist systems for their value in fashion. 

In her dissertation project, Monica Geraffo, PhD candidate at the University of California at Los Angeles, discovers why synthetic textiles played such a central role in the Cold War rivalry between political blocs. Using the extensive DuPont company records held in the Hagley Library, Geraffo highlights the shared interests of chemical firms, fashion houses, and political leaders, which aligned around synthetic textiles in the Cold War context. 

In support of her research, Geraffo received funding from the Center for the History of Business, Technology, and Society at the Hagley Museum and Library.