Anushka Tay is a researcher, writer, maker and musician based in London, U.K. She is currently a PhD student at the London College of Fashion, researching Chinese diaspora fashion & dress histories.
Her research combines multiple qualitative methods, from visual and object analysis of garments and their representations, to interviewing and oral history. Her reading of garments is informed by her practice-based background, with a decade's experience as a costume designer & maker in the theatre & performance industries.
Outside of research, she continues her artistic exploration in music, experimenting across genre and period on piano, cello and voice.
Skills
Research
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Object analysis, esp. textiles, dress & garments
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Material culture, visual analysis, media studies
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Archival research
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Conducting interviews
Writing
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Academic writing
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Grant application
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Creative writing, poetry & song
Garment & Craft
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Pattern cutting, draping & adaptation
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Sewing, tailoring, costume making for performance
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Mending & repair
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Garment alterations and fitting
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Knitting: 15+ years hand knitting experience garments & accessories; pattern-making and adaptation; lace, cables, texture, unusual shaping
Languages
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English (mother tongue)
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French (fluent)
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Conversational German, some spoken Mandarin
Conference Presentations
2019: Fashion Costume & Visual Cultures Conference
Lille-Roubaix, France (speaker & workshop facilitator)
2019: Fashioning Inclusivity Symposium
London College of Fashion (speaker & convenor)
2019, 2017: Costume & Scenography Student Symposium
Arts University at Bournemouth (invited speaker)
2019: British Chinese Women: An Interdisciplinary Workshop
King's College, London (invited speaker)
2017: International Conference of Dress Historians. INTERWOVEN: Dress that Crosses Borders and Challenges Boundaries
Art Workers' Guild, London
2017: Costume Society 50th Anniversary Conference
Art Workers' Guild, London
Writing & Publication
2017: The Courtauldian Issue 15
Minimalism and Materiality (read online, p.25)
2016: Fashion Studies Journal
My Jacket is Japanese, Not Me (read online)
2013: Pom Pom Quarterly Issue 7
Knits I Have Known and Loved
2013: Pom Pom Quarterly Issue 6
First Autumn Chill
Grants & Awards
2017: Techne AHRC PhD Studentship
full award for PhD fees & maintenance
2016: Costume Society Yarwood Award
for research abroad
2016: Pasold Textiles Research Grant
for research abroad
2016: LCF Fashion Matters Project Bursary
for research abroad
2016: Erasmus+ Study Abroad Grant
2016: Yorkshire Ladies Council of Education Award
for Masters degree
2016: UAL Access to Learning Grant
for Masters degree
2015: UAL Vice Chancellors Scholarship
for Masters degree
Education
2017 - present:
PhD (cultural studies: dress & diaspora)
London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London
2015-2017:
MA Fashion Cultures: History & Culture (Distinction)
London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London
Including Erasmus exchange at the Institute of Media Studies, Stockholm University
2009-2012:
BA (hons) Costume with Performance Design (1st)
Arts University at Bournemouth
Additional Training
2017 - Introduction to Oral History
Oral History Society, British Library
