*FIGHTER* involved the construction of two garments that examined how material culture and historical discourse permeate our understandings of others and ourselves. Specifically, I explored contemporary Chinese identity and its relation to polarized twentieth-century historical narratives, with a focus on Republican-era China. I conducted historical research to examine the Boxer Uprising and the New Culture Movement, and their relation to both domestic and international perceptions of Chinese people. Ultimately, the garments’ designs drew on sartorial motifs and archival artifacts from the two events: one piece presents a gender-bending vision of the politically evocative Zhongshan suit, and the other is printed with a restored 1900 map of the occupation of Beijing by foreign powers after the Boxer event. ![[IMG_4897.jpg]] ![[IMG_4960.jpg]] ![[look-2_wide.jpg]] ![[look-2_model.jpg]] To provide wearers with an easy launch point for further investigation, I published extensive documentation of my research and creation processes alongside the garments, including a bibliographic website and my physical journal. ![[fighter_webpage.png]] The garments were also lined with text—styled in cryptic a font I created—featuring elucidating snippets from the research I had done. Closely enveloping the wearer yet not externally visible when the garments are donned, the linings engender a feeling of intimacy towards the texts that reflects the personal nature of learning.  ![[IMG_4885.jpg]] ![[IMG_4875.jpg]] By presenting meticulously crafted garments at odds with trends of fast fashion, cryptic texts that could only be read slowly, historical perspectives not often taught in American schools, and sartorial designs rarely found in contemporary stores, I invited viewers to deeply consider habits of consumption, the construction of truth, and identity and self-fashioning. In its transmedia web of engagement, the project was an exercise in personalized interaction design for the purpose of informal learning and critical reflection. My project was awarded the Rudolf Arnheim Prize at Harvard University for the most outstanding undergraduate project that achieves excellence through interdisciplinary effort.