My doctoral dissertation focuses on the research of non-verbal, i.e. visual language of clothes. While researching the system of dressing and individual articles of clothing as a visual sign in contemporary performative arts and practices, I ascertained that their visual style provides social, cultural and sociological information. Clothing is thus becoming an artistic and aesthetic manner of expression that reveals a part of a character or situation. When everyday clothes are included into the research, the basic function of clothing remains the same from its very beginnings to today.
I have focused on clothing within the territory of former Yugoslavia because this territory was socially and politically specific and complex from the end of World War II to its disintegration. By researching the history of clothes and the system of communication with them, linguistics and visual art theory, I have gained new knowledge that provides me with a better insight into the non-verbal, i.e. visual language. If we translate the visual language into the language of clothing and link this to performative arts, we can learn about rituals, culture and cultural heritage, social status, taste, aesthetics, the individual’s attitude towards the environment, etc. The research ascertained the importance of artistic expression with the use of various articles of clothing (personal expression in relation to culture and society) and with this provided a broader frame for the understanding of history and the organisation of the state. The research also ascertained the importance of design, costume design and the textile industry for Slovene and Yugoslav societies as well as revealed the attitude of politics towards creativity, creative arts, industry, theatre… It is because of this that the dissertation is important also for the understanding of the social and cultural visual discourse in today’s world. The research also reveals the importance and the development of society through visual codes and follows the advancements and changes in relation to political and cultural changes. In my research I focused on clothing between 1945 and 1991, from the beginning of the second Yugoslavia to its final disintegration. I believe Yugoslavia presented an appropriate and interesting case due to its differences in the socialist system. I wanted to know how much freedom and what sort of interpretation can be obtained as a response to the limitation or freedom within such society. In the part of the research in which I discuss clothing and the textile industry in Yugoslavia and Yugoslav theatre, I have ascertained that the Yugoslav system did not lag behind the developed West as regards quality and development.
I have used methods of analysis, synthesis, description and compilation, with the aid of which I responded to the four hypotheses:
1.) Clothing, seen in the cultural-social and historic context, represents a visual sign aimed at communication.
2.) Clothing as a visual sign can function as non-verbal language with similar characteristics to verbal language.
3.) Clothing (wearing clothes, costumes) makes it possible for us to follow the changes in society while the visual language of clothes indicates the reasons behind the social-cultural state as well as the consequences of changes.
4.) The system of fashion, culture and theatre are social additions that are reflected in each other, depend on each other and can be followed through the visual language of clothing on the example of former Yugoslavia.
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