Whether you like it or not, fashion is an ever-changing beast. You see fashionistas in their most outrageous outfits, and often they are impractical, unwieldy, or just hilarious. So what is the point of fashion? If you are a fashion enthusiast, you must be asking yourself this question at least once a week. If you’re not sure what fashion is, check out these tips for making sense of it all.
One of the biggest questions posed by fashion skeptics is, “What is the point of all of this?”, as she asks high-end design duo Suzanne Clements. As a fashion skeptic, Tanya Gold challenges high-end design duo Inacio Ribeiro and Suzanne Clements to address the point of modern fashion. The duo’s answers, which were released in a recent book, raised some serious questions that are still being debated today.
One designer is Raf Simons, a Belgian with an interest in street culture and visual art. Simons’ menswear show last summer was inspired by the film “Blade Runner” and he sent his models down a dim lane in huge raincoats. The point of fashion, for Simons, isn’t to tell a story, but to stir emotions and make the viewer want to look at the clothes.
Another way to answer the question “what is the point of fashion” is to ask why we dress the way we do. Fashion is an intrinsically social phenomenon, and it needs followers to succeed. The way fashion is distributed depends on the type of media and the context in which it occurs. It can be top-down, bottom-up, cultural, or viral. No matter what form or method is used, if it isn’t in fashion, it won’t last long.
