Marta Chmielewska; Visiting Fellowship 2023/24
Biography:
I am currently a fourth-year PhD researcher at the History Department at the European University Institute in Florence, working on a thesis on underwear production in socialist and postsocialist small-town Poland entitled “The history of capitalism from below: Undergarment production in socialist and postsocialist small-town Poland, 1949-2023”. Supervised by Prof. Glenda Sluga, my work explores how Central and Eastern Europe’s transition from Eastern Bloc socialist states to a liberal democratic member of the EU was experienced at the local level.
In my work, I examine the history of the undergarment industry in small towns in central Poland since 1949. I am particularly interested in the Corsetry Workers Cooperative in Głowno from its establishment in 1949 until the present day, as the region remains a center for small businesses producing underwear. My aim is to understand how the introduction of capitalism to Central and Eastern Europe in 1989 and 1991, 1990s globalization, and EU enlargement in 2004 have shaped the organization of labor, gender practices, and family life. While my work focuses on small-town Poland, I aim to treat it as a case study that presents historical transitions at local and national levels, and also more broadly, at the level of the Eastern Bloc region and the international world order.
I am also interested in global socialist literature, queer studies and contemporary social theories. I am a part of Queer and Feminist Working Group at EUI.
Visiting fellowship November 2023
Motivation:
My motivation to participate in the Fellowship at the Institute of Contemporary History in Ljubljana stems from several key factors. I am eager to access and utilize the extensive collections available at the INZ Library, which will significantly enhance my research capabilities. I am also committed to refining and expanding my academic work, including work connected to the article manuscript and the completion of a chapter for my dissertation on memory of economic and political changes marked by the year 1989 in Poland. I anticipate that the collaborative environment at INZ will provide valuable inspiration and intellectual exchange to support these goals.
Lastly, my motivation is also rooted in the opportunity to engage in consultations with experienced historians and academics, not only at INZ but also at other institutions in Ljubljana. This exchange of ideas and knowledge will further enrich my research and contribute to a fruitful fellowship experience.I believe that the stay in Ljubljana will significantly strengthen my thesis project by allowing me to enter a network of academics working on similar region, time scope, and methodology, especially the bottom-up history and everyday experience in Eastern Europe around the 1989 transition from socialist state to neoliberal democracies.
Publications (a selection):
“(They look better on the breasts): advertisement, sexuality, and the bra business in postsocialist Poland” at Gender and Materiality in Central and Eastern Europe in the XX century / Special Issue of Connexe. Exploring Post- communist Spaces (in preparation)
”Black Protest. Towards a New Abortion Compromise?” (in Polish), co-author with Małgorzata Druciarek and Izabela Przybysz,” Research, Expertise, Recommendations” series, Gender Equality Observatory, Institute of Public Affairs, Warsaw 2017 ISBN: 978-83-7689-259-7
”Polish Attitude Towards Other Nations” (in Polish), author of the article featured in ”Social-political and Psychological Studies”, Ivan Franco National University of Zhytomyr, University of Warsaw, Zhytomyr, Warsaw 2017 UDC: 316: 32: 159:9 C 88
