Main content

Fashion, Art and the Body

Today's conversation ranges from the life of Wilhelm Reich and ideas about sexual liberation to the fashion statements made by artists and seen in the Accra photos of James Barnor.

Wearing denim, workwear or sharp tailoring makes a statement about how we think of ourselves. Charlie Porter has been exploring the relationship between artists and clothes. He joins writer Olivia Laing and Ekow Eshun for a conversation about clothing, bodies and our expression of our sexuality hosted by Shahidha Bari.

Olivia Laing's latest book is called Everybody: A Book about Freedom
Charlie Porter has published What Artists Wear. A former Turner prize judge, he writes and curates and is a visiting lecturer on Fashion at the University of Westminster.
British-Ghanaian photographer James Barnor's work is on show at the Serpentine Gallery in London from 19th May - 22nd October 2021.
Ekow Eshun has curated An Infinity of Traces which runs at the Lisson Gallery in London from 13 April – 5 June 2021 featuring UK-based established and emerging Black artists whose work explores notions of race, history, being and belonging.
Jade Montserrat, one of the artists featured in Ekow's show talked to Free Thinking in the programme we made about collage and Dada /programmes/m000k9ws

Producer: Emma Wallace

You can find more conversations in the Free Thinking archive and available to download as Arts & Ideas podcasts including
Olivia Laing on her novel inspired by Kathy Acker and a discussion of Alison Bechdel's Fun Home /programmes/b0b7mryz
The body past and present discussed by painter Chantal Joffe, historian Catherine Fletcher and philosopher Heather Widdows /programmes/b0b7my7k
Fashion stories in museums with guests including V&A curator Claire Wilcox /programmes/m000s2by
JJ Bola, Derek Owusu and Ben Lerner on The changing image of masculinity /programmes/m000b0mx
How do we build a new masculinity ? Sunil Gupta, CN Lester, Tom Shakespeare and Alona Pardo /programmes/m000gm6h
The politics of fashion and drag with Scrumbly Koldewyn and a report from the Royal Vauxhall Tavern /programmes/b09zcjch

Image Credit: Getty Images/Jonathan Knowles

Available now

44 minutes

Broadcast

  • Wed 26 May 2021 22:00

Featured in...

The Arts & Ideas Podcast

The Arts & Ideas Podcast

You can download all the past episodes of Radio 3's Free Thinking

Discussions and talks from the Free Thinking Festival 2019

Discussions and talks from the Free Thinking Festival 2019

Angry politics, what we can’t say, being diplomatic, weeping, emotion in music, film & TV

Click to listen to discussions, talks and music as the Free Thinking Festival 2019 Gets Emotional

Click to listen to discussions, talks and music as the Free Thinking Festival 2019 Gets Emotional

Angry politics, what we can’t say, being diplomatic, weeping, emotion in music, film & TV

CLICK to LISTEN & SEE programmes from the Free Thinking Festival 2018: The One & the Many

CLICK to LISTEN & SEE programmes from the Free Thinking Festival 2018: The One & the Many

We examine the fast-changing relationship between the individual & the crowd

CLICK to LISTEN & SEE all programmes, images, clips & features from 2017's festival

Free Thinking Festival 2017: The Speed of Life