Speaker Bios
Jason Cyrus is a fashion curator exploring questions of creativity, identity, and agency. He is also an associate lecturer in cultural and historical studies at the London College of Fashion and a PhD candidate at the University of Warwick.
Hilary Davidson is associate professor and chair of FIT's MA program in Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice. A fashion historian and curator, she originally trained as a shoemaker. Her most recent book is Jane Austen's Wardrobe (Yale, 2023).
Dr. Colleen Hill is senior curator of costume at The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology (MFIT). She received her PhD from the University of the Arts London. Since joining MFIT in 2006, she has curated eighteen exhibitions and has authored or co-authored eight books.
Evan Michelson is an antiques dealer and collector who specializes in esoteric objects. She was co-owner of the legendary East Village shop Obscura Antiques and Oddities. She is currently the owner of Obscura West located in Lambertville, New Jersey.
Ted Muehling has been designing jewelry and decorative objects inspired by organic forms found in nature since 1976. He produces multiples as well as unique pieces using a variety of materials including precious and semiprecious stones, metals, pearls, plastic, horn, and wood.
Niio Perkins, Kanien'kehá:ka Bear Clan, is an award-winning artist whose modern aesthetic fuses traditional symbols with organic shapes and vibrant colorways, creating unique pieces inspired by the beauty of her Haudenosaunee culture. Niio Perkins has been a strong presence in Indigenous art, fashion, and media for over a decade through heirloom jewelry creations and traditional and contemporary clothing.
Mei Mei Rado is assistant professor at Bard Graduate Center, where she teaches history of textiles, dress, and decorative arts. Her research focuses on fashion and textiles in the transcultural context from the eighteenth to the early twentieth century.
Petra Slinkard is director of curatorial affairs and the Nancy B. Putnam Curator of Fashion and Textiles at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts. She leads an award-winning exhibition program, oversees a robust global fashion and textiles collection, and curates experiences on dress history and identity. Previously, she stewarded collections at the Chicago History Museum and at Newfields in Indianapolis.