Aspelund, Karl: - Karl Aspelund, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor and the Chair of the Department of Textiles, Fashion Merchandising and Design at the University of Rhode Island, and Visiting Associate Professor in Ethnography and Museum Studies at the University of Iceland. He has been a designer, artist, and teacher for over 35 years in apparel, theater, film, exhibits, public art, digital media, and more. He received his Ph.D. in Anthropology and Material Culture from Boston University, where his dissertation was awarded the University Professor's Edmonds Prize for Best Doctoral Dissertation of the Academic Year 2010-2011. A volume of essays on Icelandic culture-creation he co-authored and co-edited was nominated for the 2017 Icelandic Publishers' Association's Literary Prize for Academic Work. Dr. Aspelund's research interests are in the field of design theory, and personal and social identity creation through apparel.