Image copyright Vogue Archive.

From Iya Grigorievna de Gay in the 1930s to Natalia Vodianova in the early 2000s, the Russian emigree has left her own inimitable stamp on Carroll’s child heroine. This talk explores the decisive role played by Russian emigrees in drawing fashion inspiration from Alice in Wonderland, touching on reasons why Russians are attracted to Alice, Wonderland, and the Looking Glass, and the enduring influence this has had on ladies' fashion. 

Kiera is Professor of Children’s Literature and Childhood Culture at Queen Mary University of London. Her work brings children’s literature studies into dialogue with other fields including classics and costume history, and regularly involves collaboration with high-profile organisations across the creative and cultural industries. Kiera’s research centres on children’s literature and childhood culture from the mid-nineteenth century to the present day, with a particular focus on Victorian works and their afterlives, as well as postcolonial literature and world literature. She is currently completing a book Fashioning Alice: The Career of Lewis Carroll's Icon, 1860-1901 due out with Bloomsbury in 2018, and in 2015 curated The Alice Look at the V&A.