Historic

Paradise Fashioned:  Introducing a New Concept

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Abstract

This paper introduces Paradise Fashioned, a framework for analyzing the use of tropically-themed clothing to facilitate the militarization and colonialism of the Pacific Islands. We argue that foreign entities utilized bright and resort-like clothing to “camouflage” their goals by making their actions appear in line with local customs. Our framework is based on four elements: (1) Require western-style dress to gain benefits; (2) Link local clothing to militourism; (3) Dress military personnel in local clothing; and (4) Integrate military and colonial images to local clothing.  These four components are used to organize and analyze a case study of the role of aloha wear in the colonialism and militarism of the Hawaiian Islands. 

Keywords: alohawear, clothes, colonization, culture, fashion, Hawai`i

How to Cite:

Sasaki, C. & Reilly, A., (2025) “Paradise Fashioned:  Introducing a New Concept”, International Textile and Apparel Association Annual Conference Proceedings 81(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/itaa.18495