The making of style: On the entanglement of algorithms and aesthetics

Abstract The global fashion industry is changing with the integration of digital technologies. Designers now employ digital design software, tools and technology to develop innovative designs, purchase fabrics and materials and market their new designs. Digital media and technology have also contributed to the growth of influencers and personal stylists who use social media and apps to offer reviews and advice, including personal devices that leverage machine learning and algorithmic recommendation systems. This article brings together design anthropology and digital anthropology to understand the ways in which algorithms are increasingly entangled with notions of aesthetics and style. Comparing the ways in which style is created through ‘feeding’ and ‘reading’ the algorithm, the article draws upon Seaver’s notion of algorithmic cultures to explore two examples of the ways algorithms are made meaningful in people’s lives. The first example was carried out with professional women who experimented with a commercially available personal stylist device that provides algorithm‐based style recommendations. The second case study turns to the ways different fashion designers use and interpret social media algorithms to develop brands locally in Fiji and globally. By exploring the ways in which fashion and style‐oriented algorithms are used by different individuals and communities across the fashion value chain, the article examines how algorithmic technologies become enlivened as different people act, engage and interact with them and change over time.