Rachel Silberstein is a cultural historian of visual and material culture in early modern China, specializing in fashion and textile handicrafts. She earned a DPhil in Oriental Studies from the University of Oxford (2014) . Her thesis is entitled “Embroidered figures : commerce and culture in the late Qing fashion system” uses vernacular texts and material culture to explore the importance of handicraft commercialization and fashionable dress for Chinese women during the mid-late Qing period. Her  MA is in Chinese Linguistics and Language from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. She is currently a lecturer in the Jackson School of International Studies, University of Washington, where she teaches classes on fashion history, and Chinese material culture. Rachel is the Book Reviews editor for Textile History.

Veronika Gervers Research Fellowship participant
Fellowship Year: 2012