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About Me

My name is Faith Cooper and I am an academic professional based in Taipei and New York City.  With over ten years of experience working in museums and the arts, I specialize in researching fashion, cultural identity, and Asian studies. 

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Currently, I am completing a Fulbright grant in Taiwan. At Fu Jen Catholic University (Taipei), I am studying brand and fashion management in the Asia-Pacific market and researching the cultural identity of Taiwanese fashion designers.

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My educational background includes earning an MA in Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice and a BS in Art History and Museum Professions, both from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City.

CV - Faith Cooper

Educational Background

MA, Brand and Fashion Management
Fu Jen Catholic University (New Taipei City)
MA, Fashion and Textile Studies: History, Theory, Museum Practice
Fashion Institute of Technology (New York City)

  • Completed two independent study courses, "Chinese Dress, Fashion, and Style" and "Chinese Orientalism in Fashion," under the supervision of Dr. Yuniya Kawamura

  • My thesis explored how Western culture and fashion glamourized the imagery of Mao Zedong and China's Cultural Revolution to fit a revolutionary and orientalist agenda while ignoring the realities of Chinese life.

BS, Art History and Museum Professions
Fashion Institute of Technology (New York City)

  • Minor: Asian Studies

Professional Experience

Event Content Manager (2021-2022)
Committee of 100

  • Founded in 1990, Committee of 100 is a non-partisan leadership organization of prominent Chinese Americans in business, government, academia, and the arts.

  • Its founders include I.M. Pe, Yo-Yo Ma, Henry S. Tang, Oscar Tang, Shirley Young, and Chien-Shiung Wu.

Part-Time Social Sciences Faculty (2022)
Fashion Institute of Technology
Education Assistant (2014-2021)
The Museum at FIT

  • The Museum at FIT is the only museum in New York City dedicated solely to the art of fashion and features innovative and award-winning exhibitions.

Contributor (2020-2021)
Fashion and Race Database
Special Events and Strategic Partnerships (2014)
Christie's

  • Supported staff with research projects and auction sales

Education Intern (2013)
Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum
Musical Instruments Intern (2012)
Christie's

  • Assisted in executing VIP events, auctions, and collaborations

Fashion Intern (2011-2012)
International Condé Nast 

  • Collaborated with editorial staff for photoshoots

Fashion Intern (2010-2011)
Vogue

  • Assisted staff with fittings, photoshoots, and events, including the Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Projects

Asian Fashion Archive

  • In May 2020, I created the Asian Fashion Archive, a digital resource project highlighting Asian fashion, culture, and history. This project includes a website and an Instagram page.

Eleanor Lambert: Empress of Seventh Avenue (2020)
The Museum at FIT

  • In March 2020, I co-curated the exhibition Eleanor Lambert: Empress of Seventh Avenue at The Museum at FIT. It is the first exhibition to explore the life of Eleanor Lambert (1903–2003) and her tireless advocacy for American fashion designers and the New York fashion industry. 

Global Fashion Capitals Fair (2015)
The Museum at FIT

  • To coincide with The Museum at FIT's Global Fashion Capitals exhibition (2015), I organized the Global Fashion Capitals Fair, where visitors interacted with members of the international fashion community. Collaborators included SUNY Confucius Institute for Business, The Finnish Cultural Institute of New York's Mobius program, the Consulate of Spain in New York, and the Consulate of Turkey in New York.

Writing

"The Cross-Cultural Transformations of Chinese Food and Fashion"(2023)
Food and Fashion (Bloomsbury)

  • Coinciding with The Museum at FIT's Food and Fashion exhibition, "The Cross-Cultural Transformations of Chinese Food and Fashion" essay details the history of how Chinese Americans have been persecuted for their cultural dress and cuisine, as well as explores how contemporary Chinese designers and artists are using fashion and art to overturn Western stereotypical narratives.

"1995 – Vivienne Tam, Mao Collection" (2020)
FIT Fashion History Timeline
"Objects That Matter: Qipao" (2020)
Fashion and Race Database

  •  The "Objects That Matter: Qipao" article features a short profile of the qipao, its cultural origins, and enumerated examples of its global reach/influence and even appropriation.

"Mad for Mao: The Fashionable Fantasy of Communist China" (2020)
Fashion Institute of Technology

  • My FIT graduate school qualification paper "Mad for Mao: The Fashionable Fantasy of Communist China" explores how Western culture and fashion glamourized the imagery of Mao Zedong and China's Cultural Revolution to fit a revolutionary and orientalist agenda while ignoring the realities of Chinese life.

"Gucci Strikes Red: China's Love Affair with Gucci" (2019)
FIT Fashion History Timeline
"The Culture of Learning at MFIT" (2019)
Exhibitionism: 50 Years of the Museum at FIT (Skira)

  • Coinciding with the Exhibitionism: 50 Years of the Museum at FIT exhibition, "The Culture of Learning at MFIT" details the enlightening history of The Museum at FIT and its educational initiatives.

Awards & Grants

U.S. Student Program - Taiwan (2022-2024)
Fulbright Program
Critical Language Enhancement Award- Mandarin Chinese (2022-2023)
Fulbright Program

  • The Critical Language Enhancement Award (CLEA) promotes the Fulbright Program's goal of cross-cultural exchange and dialogue through language study. 

  • Completed two semesters of Mandarin Chinese intensive learning

Extra Mile Award (2020)
Fashion For All Foundation
Jim Liles Award (2018)
Costume Society of America 

  • Awarded for my paper "Céleste Mogador: The Fashionable Rise of the Demimonde," which was presented at the 2018 Costume Society of America Southeastern Region & Mid-Atlantic Joint Symposium

Student Travel Award (2018)
Costume Society of America

  • Awarded for my paper "Healing Tina: Exploring the Power of Tina Chow’s Jewelry," which was presented at the 2018 Costume Society of America Midwest Regional Symposium

Committees

Associate Board Member (2021-2022)
Apex for Youth

  • Apex for Youth's Associate Board aims to help grow and foster the Apex community through volunteer recruitment and retention, community outreach and marketing, and the cultivation of young donors.

Diversity Council Committee Member (2019-2021)
Fashion Institute of Technology

  • The mission of the Diversity Council is to create a climate of inclusion and equality within the FIT community.

College Group at The Met Committee Member (2011-2014)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art

  • The College Group at the Met is a group of twenty-five local college students who plan and produce events and programs for The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Organizations

Volunteer (2023)
FJCU Chinese Textiles and Clothing Culture Center 

  • The Fu Jen Catholic University’s Chinese Textiles and Clothing Culture Center collection comprises of more than 10,000 pieces of Taiwan Aborigines, Chinese Majorities and Chinese Ethnic Minorities, including textiles, costumes, accessories, related materials, and tools.

Fulbright Traveler Volunteer (2023)
Reach the World

  • Reach the World (RTW) partners with the Institute of International Education to engage Fulbright U.S. Student scholars in digital exchange with U.S. youth.

  • Documented my life in Taiwan for students in North Carolina

Middle & High School Mentor (2021-2022)
Apex for Youth

  • Apex for Youth delivers possibilities to underserved Asian and immigrant youth in NYC.

Professional Development
Programs

Ann Lowe Summer Intensive Program (2020)
Fashion for All Foundation
Museum Education Practicum (2019)
The Studio Museum in Harlem

  • The Museum Education Practicum is a ten-week intensive training program focused on conversations around artists of African descent, contemporary art practice, museum education, and programmatic strategies.

Media Mentions & Interviews

SCMP
Modem
Selvedge
Lively
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Photog
Miniskirts
Fashionista
EL WWD
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