An archaeology of the future of fashion: semiotic plots and aesthetic anticipations from the Space Age to the Postdigital Horizon.

Abstract

The contribution aims to develop an investigation into the mechanisms through which fashion exercises its predictive and anticipatory capacities by analyzing the impact of sartorial signs and symbols in two distinct historical periods: the Space Age of the 1960s and the advent of FashionTech at the dawn of the new millennium. Drawing on the foundations of classical semiotics, the study seeks to formulate a systemic interpretation of fashion, highlighting the importance of tools, technologies, and communication mechanisms that have shaped its meaning over time and in the perception of future time. Although fashion is intrinsically linked to the present and its contemporary signs, it constantly projects itself towards what will be, acting as a medium to explore and reflect on emerging visions as a collective cultural imaginary. The Space Age Couture of the 1970s, influenced by technological advancements and a climate of optimism, saw pioneers like Pierre Cardin and Paco Rabanne create a futuristic aesthetic with synthetic materials and geometric shapes. With the new millennium, FashionTech introduced wearable technologies and new materials, transforming clothing into a hybrid entity. Designers such as Iris van Herpen and Anouk Wipprecht transcend the boundaries between fashion, art, and technology, laying the foundations for a renewed semiotic system characterized by hybrid forms that transcend the dichotomies between space and earth, between present and future.