Abstract
Freed from its traditional confinement to the human body, postmodernism in fashion exposes the defectiveness of body and abstracts from the body under. As the 20th century art put premium on self-expression, the body itself became a powerful medium of expression in fashion. Using 'body' to analyze the clothing form, my study develops a framework by which to classify the fragmentation of the body in fashion. In order to inquire the formative style and aesthetic values expressed in fragmentation of the body in fashion, my study examines subjects from the discourse on the body to the fashion collections of the late 20th and 21st century, The results of the study are as follows. Fragmentation of the body in fashion means the break away from the idealized and standardized body for mass productions. It tends to experiment with extreme exaggeration in form, refusing to subscribe to the traditional values that build on the balance and symmetry of the body. The formative aspects of fragmentation are achieved through body casting, displacement, and deconstruction. The absence of physicality in fashion opposes the sartorial convention and symbolism that results in the discord between signifiant and $signifi{\tilde{e}}$ of clothing. Fashion continues to explore forms and images that transcend the traditional representations of the clothed body. As a type of intimate architecture, fashion always mediates the dialogue between clothes and body, or fashion and figure. My study suggests a framework to analyze fragmentation of the body in fashion, focusing on the relationship between the clothes and body.