Kimberly M. Jenkins
I’m an educator, researcher and founder who specializes in the sociocultural and historical influences behind why we wear what we wear.
Photo credit: Kyna Marie
On the Calendar
The highly-anticipated “first Monday in May” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute will host its grand gala for Superfine: Tailoring Black Style. The Met Gala is a televised red carpet event that is a fashion show in itself, featuring its celebrity guests. The Gala is both celebrated and critiqued each year, as some looks on the red carpet “understand the assignment” or miss the theme entirely, and this race-related exhibition is under close watch.
This year, The Fashion and Race Database is hosting a live roundtable “Met Gala Debrief,” as we react to the looks and key moments from the event – through a fashion academic lens.
Tickets to this virtual gathering are free, but donations are appreciated to keep our work going.
The Critics:
Dr. Jonathan M. Square, Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design and founder of Fashioning the Self in Slavery and Freedom
Darnell Jamal Lisby, Assistant Curator of Fashion, The Cleveland Museum of Art
Kimberly Jenkins, fashion studies scholar and founder of The Fashion and Race Database
Moderated by:
Shelcy Joseph, Founder and Editor of Market Appointment
Assistant Moderator:
Markeilan Smith, Winter/Spring 2025 intern at The Fashion and Race Database and M.A. candidate, Fashion Studies at Parsons School of Design–Paris
Kim presented a talk on the most complicated aspect of fashion at TEDxFoggyBottom in April 2025.
Look out for the recording of Kim’s talk on the TEDx YouTube channel this summer, where she discusses the history, politics and emothions behind getting dressed – “The Other Side of Fashion.”
News: “For Black men, fashion has been a tool of self-expression — and a way they’ve been judged” (AP News)
Read on for Kim’s insights surrounding the 2025 Met Gala and exhibition, Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.
Image courtesy AP Photo