How Textile Communicates: From Codes to Cosmotechnics

Textile has been used as a medium of communication since the prehistoric period. Up until the 19th century, civilizations throughout the world manipulated thread and fabric to communicate in a way that would astound many of us now.
Unlike text and images, textile is haptic and three-dimensional. Its meaning is unfixed, constantly shifting as it circulates between different owners and creators. In How Textile Communicates, Ganaele Langlois dissects textile’s unique capacity for communication through a range of global case studies, before examining the profound impact of colonialism on textile practice and the appropriation of this medium by capitalist systems.

A thought-provoking contribution to the fields of both fashion and communication studies, Langlois’ writing challenges readers’ preconceptions and shines new light on the profound impact of textiles on human communication.

Ganaele Langlois is Associate Professor in Communication Studies at York University, Canada, and Associate Director of the Infoscape Centre for the Study of Social Media. Her research focuses on new media theory, software studies and technoculture.