Why I like fashion

I was asked the question once, by a teacher at an Art Acadamy. 'But what is it exactly that you like about fashion?' I did not know what to say. I murmured something about showing your identity and she sourly replied: 'that sounds more like styling'. Then I triend again to explain, and talked about 'to make something that is based on the body...' I was interrupted. She said: 'fashion is not always based on the body, inspiration can be drawn from anywhere. I think you should look at designers like John Galliano or Alexander McQueen.' But I knew exactly what their designs looked like!
I must admit, this awkward conversation set me thinking.

Why o why do I like fashion? It is not like it does a lot of good to the world. More like the opposite. Pollution and exploitation are two huge problems the fashion industry causes and eventually has to deal with. Furthermore, fashion does not broaden the mind or anything. It is not like art; you will not get confronted in any way with your own views. Lots of people would describe it as frivolous and flat.

I really hate the dumb 'shopping is my hobby' lifestyle and the arrogance and waste it represents. In movies and books like SAT, Shopaholic and Gossip Girl (not that I do not watch and read these series) we see wealthy women spending huge amounts of money on clothing. I do not think I could ever live on with a clear conscience if I knew that my Céline bag could feed an entire village in Africa. The example these series are setting for the mind-set of young women is in the least worrysome.

If we are already talking about examples: ever noticed the kind of girls that fashion magazines label as 'it'? I will not mention any names, but those girls are more likely to be chosen because they are rich, pretty, and are wearing nice clothes, than because they have actually accomplished something or because of their musicality, intellect or creativity. The fashion industry loves these 'it-girls': they need them and vice versa.

I guess this sounds all really negative, but it is not my intention to write off fashion as some sort of plain, guilty pleasure. I acknowledge the better sides of fashion, or must I say, I desperately cling to them.

First of all, the clothes make the man. Fashion is a great way to display your identity. Your clothing style does say somethiong about you as a person. I admit, sometimes the assumptions you make about people because of their clothing are not correct. For example, a freaky gothic can be a really sweet and nice person, although you would expect a harsher character.

Maybe some people will not give away their personalities with their clothing style, but then their sartorial choices will show off their moods. If someone dresses as a punker one day and wears a cute floral dress the next, you cannot extract one specific kind of personality. But it does tell you a specific kind of mood he or she was in that day.

Secondly, fashion is a victim of history. It changes with time. Times change, fashions change. The famous writer Oscar Wilde once said: 'fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months.' I totally agree with him. Ever looked at clothing that was fashionable five years ago? It hurts your eyes. Even our beloved Coco Chanel said that fashion is made to become unfashionable. The plus side however, is that it will become classy again if enough time passes.

Not only fashion is a victim of history. Art is too. This is why there are so many interconnections between fashion and art (something I find highly interesting). They are linked throughout history because they reflect on the same zeitgeist. To conclude; fashion displays as much a time in history as it displays a personality or mood.

Thirdly, the developments the fashion world goes through these years have shaken it all up a bit. The evolving influence of blogs play an important role in the democratisation process of the fashion world. Young people around the globe make their own trends and show off their outfits on personal style blogs. Inspiration can come from anywhere and is no longer solely centred in the big fashion cities. Style is no longer dictated by fashion magazines and celebrities: style originates from the creativity of the masses. Note the important place that street style takes in fashion nowadays. A lot of designers find inspiration for their collections on the street. All these developments combined will fasten the democratisation process.

To conclude, we cannot deny that the fashion industry has its down sides. But we cannot ignore the better sides either. Fashion is a medium through which one can express his or her creativity. And I do not mean just the creativity of fashion designers, I mean the creativity of every interested person. One single dress can represent a personality or an entire time in history. Fashion changes quick, which is exciting. The recent developments of democratisation of the fashion world have made this field even more interesting and intriguing. The world would be colourless and boring without fashion. It is an engaging aspect of self representation and to be honest, I wouldn't want to live without it.

So it turns out that one question by an art acadamy teacher was much needed to finally clarify my thoughts. Please join the conversation and tell me why you like fashion.