Research

Research Interests

My teaching and research focus on fashion cultures, twentieth century print media (interwar and 1940s women’s magazines), and the social and affective benefits of creative making. This involves issues of dress and identity, memory, gender and sexuality, heritage, ethics and sustainability, slow fashion, modest fashion, participatory textiles, and community engagement. Working with esteemed colleagues (academics, practitioners, and cultural leaders in Manchester, the West Midlands and elsewhere) I have developed the concepts ‘quiet activism’ and ‘well-making’ to better understand and evidence the power of cultural affect through creativity and collaboration.

Developing externally funded projects has been central to my research practice, most recently the doctoral studentship ‘Re-making Menswear: Crafting a modern Indian heritage model for inclusive, conscious style-fashion-dress’ in collaboration with external partner Craftspace (https://Craftspace.co.uk). Recent publications include: ‘Maker-centricity and ‘edge-places of creativity’: CARE-full Making in a CARE-less World’, special issue on race and craft economies for the European Journal of Cultural Studies and ‘Changing the World Not Just our Wardrobes: A Sensibility for Sustainable Clothing, Care and Quiet Activism’ in the Routledge Fashion Companion.

I would be very happy to consider postgraduate supervision in these and related areas.

Externally-funded Projects

2023: NWCDTP Collaborative Doctoral Award: ‘Re-making Menswear: Crafting a modern Indian heritage model for inclusive, conscious style-fashion-dress’ in collaboration with partner Craftspace. Prof Hackney PI. 80K approx. Named student Lokesh Ghai to start Sept 2024 (Full time).

2022-23: ‘Making Care Visible (MCV): co-making care with, in and through communities’ – Engagement and research UKRI call: ‘Engage the public with the future of health and care in the UK’. Prof Hackney PI, Dr Lynn Setterington (Design) Co-I. Partners: Innovation Health Manchester, Arts Well, and Craftspace. 40K (unsuccessful)

2019-2021: ‘RAV: Raising Awareness of Value: Women and Crafts in India’ British Council, Making Futures, India (20K total 10K to MMU) Shalini Gupta Pearl Academy India. Prof Hackney academic lead MMU.

2017–2019: AHRC Designing a Sensibility for Sustainable Clothing Choices: Prof Hackney Co-I with Exeter University leading. £450,000 in total. (AH/R000123/1)

2017-2019: AHRC Maker-Centric: building place-based, co-making communities (100k) Follow on Funding for Impact and Engagement (100k) Follow on Funding for Impact and Engagement, Prof Hackney PI. (AH/P009638/1)

2016: The Maker Movement: 50Kwork package for D4D: Disability and Community: Dis/engagement, dis/enfranchisement, dis/parity and dissent (AH/N004108/1): disability and alienation. Disability, creative making and performance. 1 April 2016-Jan 2017.

2016: AHRC Connected Communities Festival 2016: Community Futures and Utopias. Making-Centric: Community Co-speculation, Prototyping Future Thinking as Living Heritage.

Augmented Award £15,000 plus supplementary award £5000. D. Fig, Craftspace: PI, Dr Hackney Co-I. (March-October 2016)

2015: Protopolitics (£15,000) competitive funding from AHRC-funded Protopublics Social Design Sprint Workshop to develop prototype methodology connecting older people and policy makers through design fictions. Dr Hackney Co-I, with partners at Lancaster, Cardiff and Brighton Universities, and partners: Age UK, and the All-Party Parliamentary Design and Innovation Group (APDIG) (June-September 2015). The pilot leads to an opportunity to bid for a larger funded project.

2015: Future Thinking for Social Living (£9,200) R&I funding Falmouth University Pilot Project with Coastline Housing & Arts for Health Cornwall (March – June)

2015: Making Soundwaves: Community Voices as Heritage Activism, AHRC Connected Communities Festival (£9,000 +) engagement project with Tate St Ives (March-September)

2014-15: Dr Hackney P.I. (£10,000) #wellMAKING: Craftivist Garden: 1 July 2014 – 30 January 2015 working with Arts for Health Cornwall, Voluntary Arts England and Craftivist Collective, this AHR-funded activist project raises consciousness about craft and wellbeing and was developed from the Beyond the Tookit Symposium (below). It is nationwide and will conclude with an event in London.

2014: March-July 1-2: Connected Communities Festival, Cardiff. Dr Hackney P.I. project researchers and community partners received funding (£44,323.00) to run a series of events and breakout workshops including: Crafts Bazaar installation; two breakout workshops; films; posters and graphics; ‘Killing Time’ performance (music and knitters) and Craftivist Garden #wellmaking launch (see above (March 2014-July 2014):

2014: Beyond the Toolkit: Understanding & Evaluating Crafts Praxis for Health and Wellbeing, 19-20 February, Falmouth University: AHRC-funded Supplementary Knowledge Exchange/Dissemination Event (£10,000: June 2013-March 2014);a collaboration between Arts for Health, Cornwall and Falmouth Universityto explore the benefits of craft and creative making for health and well-being. The Symposium included national and international speakers, workshops led by creative practitioners and an exhibition of work by community groups in a range of arts for health settings.

2013: Dr Fiona Hackney and colleagues received funding (£12,025.50) to run a workshop, create a film and exhibition materials as part of the AHRC Connected Communities Showcase events in London: ‘Crafting Communities: The Politics of Making, Craft, Participatory Engagement, Health and Wellbeing’ at AHRC Connected Communities Showcase Event, London 12-13 March. : http://www.ahrc.ac.uk/News-and-Events/Watch-and-Listen/Pages/Connected-Communities-Showcase-Event.aspx and Edinburgh: Co-producing CARE: Community asset-based research & enterprise: Dr Fiona Hackney, Deidre Figereido Craftspace, Hannah Maughan, Bryony Stokes. http://www.ahrc.ac.uk/News-and-Events/Events/Pages/Connected-Communities-Edinburgh-Showcase.aspx

2013-2014: Co-producing CARE: Community Asset-based Research & Enterprise, AHRC standard application (£125,000). Dr Hackney P.I. Bid in collaboration with Northumbria University and Craftspace, Birmingham, follows Connected Communities Summit.(Feb 2013 – June 2014). https://cocreatingcare.wordpress.com/the-project/

2012-2015: Research Studentship: AHRC: Collaborative Doctoral Award (CDA) ‘Use Your Hands for Happiness’: Crafts practice as a means of building community assets, health and well-being’ in partnership with Arts for Health Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (AFHC). Dr Hackney P.I., Co- I.s, Dr Nicola Thomas & AFHC Director Jayne Howard. (£54,000). http://www.artsforhealthcornwall.org.uk/news/use-your-hands-for-happiness

2012: Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) Research Grant (£100,000) ‘Community-Appropriated Research Model’ (CARM). P.I., Dr. Anne Light, Co-I., Dr. Hackney.

2011: AHRC Network Grant (£34,000) for ‘Connecting Craft and Communities’. P.I., Dr. Nicola Thomas, Co-I.s, Dr. Hackney and Dr. Bunnell. https://connectingcraftcommunities.wordpress.com/

2010: AHRC Project Development Proposal (£15,000).‘Genealogies of Place’. P.I., Professor Hamish Fyfe, Co-I.s., Dr. Hackney, Dr. Frohlich, and Steve Thompson.

2008-15: AHRC Research Studentship (open competition) £49,024. ‘Reconstruction Deconstructed: A study of post-war housing in Plymouth’.

2008-13: Three European Social Fund (ESF) Studentships totalling £180,000. ‘The Mingei and its Transnational Reception: A Comparative Study of Studio Pottery in South West England and South West Canada’; ‘Performing Memory: Art, Community, Archive and Place’; and ‘Bartram Hiles (1872-1927) Art, Commerce & Disability’.

2008-10: Heritage Lottery Funded (HLF) project, ‘Memory Bay: The Art Community in St. Ives, Cornwall’. Jointly developed with Tate St Ives, St Ives Archive, Leach Pottery and Porthmeor Studios (£50,000). Dr. Hackney was a member of the development team and steering committee.

2008: Design History Society (DHS) grant (£1,500) to support keynote speakers, Professor Bruno Latour, Professor Jeremy Myerson and designer Jan Konings at ‘Networks of Design’ conference, Falmouth University

2008: Higher Education Academy grant (£3,000) to support research on design pedagogy at ‘Networks of Design’ conference, FU.

2001: Design History Society Research Award (£1,000) to support research on print culture and women’s magazines.

1998-99: University of the Arts London (UAL) Research award (£1,500) to support research on print culture and women’s magazines.