Postponed – Book Talk with Sofi Thanhauser
Postponed. New date TBD
On Saturday, February 12 at 3pm, the West Tisbury Library presents a book talk with author Sofi Thanhauser. Please join for a reading from Sofi’s newly released book, Worn: A People’s History of Clothing. Books will be available for purchase and signing. This event is free and open to the public. Mask required.
Sofi Thanhauser grew up in West Tisbury. She teaches in the writing department at Pratt Institute. Sofi has received fellowships and residencies at MacDowell, Ucross Foundation, and the Millay Colony for the Arts, and has contributed to The Establishment, Essay Daily, Wag’s Revue, The Spectator, whitehot magazine of contemporary art, The Conversant, Entropy, Dilettante Army, and Edible Vineyard, among other publications.
About the book:
A sweeping and captivatingly told history of clothing and the stuff it is made of—an unparalleled deep-dive into how everyday garments have transformed our lives, our societies, and our planet.
In this panoramic social history, Sofi Thanhauser brilliantly tells five stories—Linen, Cotton, Silk, Synthetics, Wool—about the clothes we wear and where they come from, illuminating our world in unexpected ways. She takes us from the opulent court of Louis Quatorze to the labor camps in modern-day Chinese-occupied Xinjiang. We see how textiles were once dyed with lichen, shells, bark, saffron, and beetles, displaying distinctive regional weaves and knits, and how the modern Western garment industry has refashioned our attire into the homogenous and disposable uniforms popularized by fast fashion brands.
Thanhauser makes clear how the clothing industry has become one of the planet’s worst polluters, and how it relies on chronically underpaid and exploited laborers. But she also shows us how micro-communities, textile companies, and clothing makers in every corner of the world are rediscovering ancestral and ethical methods for making what we wear.
Drawn from years of intensive research and reporting from around the world, and brimming with fascinating stories, Worn reveals to us that our clothing comes not just from the countries listed on the tags or ready-made from our factories. It comes, as well, from deep in our histories.