PhD Research
Liza Foley The Cultural and Material Agency of Leather Gloves in Eighteenth Century England
This research examines the significance of leather gloves in eighteenth century England. Adopting a perspective that privileges artefact, archival, visual and literary sources through material culture analysis, it traces the glove’s physical and conceptual transformation from a dead animal skin to a luxury article of refinement. It pays particular attention to the relation between the materiality of leather and the construction of politeness. Through an analysis of the production and environments in which leather was produced, it will show how the materiality of leather made its contribution towards the production of the cultural meaning of leather gloves. Equally, the cultural meanings of the gloves, relating to issues of the body, class distinction and the performance of gender, have significant impact on the materiality of the
glove itself. Understanding the glove through the relation of materiality and cultural meaning confirms the leather glove as an article of significant material agency. This agency becomes apparent in examples of personal and ceremonial gift exchange where gloves can also hold powerful influence as erotically charged or emotionally invested artefacts. The implications of this research may be seen not only to demonstrate the significance of the materiality of objects in terms of material culture studies but also to reconsider the cultural relevance of these artefacts whose significance currently resides at the margins of historical enquiry. PhD Student, Faculty of Visual Culture, Year 1 Supervisor: Dr. Anna Moran
Above: Glover’s trade card, 18th century, Trade card collection, The Lewis Walpole Library.
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