Purpose – This paper aims to elucidate how cultural intermediaries shape the subjectivity of other
marketplace actors in fashion, thus preserving the illusio underpinning this field of cultural
production.
Design/methodology/approach – Narrative interviews were conducted with cultural intermediaries in
the fashion industry. These were supplemented with non-participant observations, carried out simultaneously
during the research process. Interview transcripts and field notes were analysed using a combination of
holistic-content and categorical-content analysis.
Findings – As the fashion field is constructed around beliefs as to what constitutes value, the empirical data
demonstrate how fashion models’ embody the illusio of the field and authenticate the values, meanings and
identities inherent in it through aestheticised and rarefied styles of performance. These activities seduce other
market actors and engender a willing suspension of disbelief that in turn mobilises affective intensities
resulting in perceptions of legitimacy.
Research limitations/implications – This research adds greater clarity to what cultural
intermediaries do when they mediate between economy and culture. To do this, our research is analysed
in terms of the ritual performance, the sensibility of the model, the use of the body and the performative
fusion.
Practical implications – The paper offers practical implications insofar as it deconstructs the two core
ritualistic aspects of the fashion industry which each season yields significant tangible outputs in various
forms. The combination of narrative inquiry with observation allows for a better understanding of how these
events can be best channelled to mediate the illusio of this cultural field.
Originality/value – To date, there has been very little consumer research that explores cultural
intermediaries and less still that offers an empirical glimpse of their performance. This research adds
greater clarity to these embodied performances that legitimate other market actors’ suspension of
disbelief while also demystifying the ambiguity with which cultural intermediaries are discussed in
consumer research.
History
Publication
European Journal of Marketing;52 (9/10), pp. 2052-2074
Publisher
Emerald
Note
peer-reviewed
Rights
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