Is the Fashion Press to Blame?
Manolo says, the Manolo’s indispensable internet friend Lesley of the Fashion Tribes has posted her thoughts on the most intriguing panel discussion at the Academy of Art in San Francisco. Here is the excerpt.
In his opinion, since no one in the audience - comprised mostly of students - was dressed in a way that remotely resembled a fashion editorial, magazines were obviously out-of-touch and irrelevant. Galanos heartily concurred, and according to his extremely narrow-minded and dated definition of what can be considered “fashion,” anything fantastic but unwearable that walks down a runway is to be considered an exercise in self-discovery rather than fashion. Michael Fink noted that from his perspective as a retailer, he needs to focus on what sells. Sadly, there were neither actual women nor members of the press invited to participate, despite being the market in question and the apparent cause of the demise of modern fashion.
The fact is, in this age of too many trends, designers, and choices, the fashion press is the very reason why fashion remains vibrant and interesting to women.
Editors and fashion writers address this overload of information by sifting, editing, and curating what’s worth putting in your closet. […]
In addition, “unwearable” clothing and editorial spreads feed into the fantasy element of fashion: yes, it’s a business, but it’s one founded upon creativity, both of the designer, and of the wearer as a means of their self expression. “Crazy” clothes fuel people’s imagination, spark ideas, and, ultimately, help keep fashion interesting, aspirational, and in demand.
This point is exactly correct, that yes, much of that which is sent down the runway is unwearable by anyone other than the 14-year-old Belorussian anorexics, but the process of presenting such fantasy clothes does much to shape and reshape our perceptions of what is beautiful.
Query: Are the designers out of touch because they present clothing that cannot be worn by ordinary women?
Answer: In truth this question cannot be answered without specific context; without making reference to both the specific designer and the specific runway show. And even then out-of-touchness is not absolute; there are degrees, and thus the most obtuse show usually contains elements which are worthy of our attention, just as the most mundane may miss that quality which makes it relevant to the current cultural moment.
Query: Are the fashion magazines out of touch because they feature clothing that cannot be worn by ordinary women?
Answer: No. The fashion magazines have the dual mandate, to please readers and to please advertisers. And while there is some tension between these two goals, the Manolo suspects that this tension is less than many peoples imagine.
Query: Why do fashion magazine show us gangly, Ukrainian middle-schoolers in Dior couture?
Query: Why do car magazines spend enormous amounts of time reporting on test drives and specifications of exceedingly expensive and exotic super cars?
Answer: For the same reason, because we are entertained and motivated by such images. And because we aspire to have beautiful things (clothes, cars, homes, art) that reflect what we perceive as our inner persons. The magazines do not create this desire–as it is inherent in all of us–instead they merely seek to shape and direct our desires towards that which its editors value and advertisers wish us to acquire.
Query: Is the Manolo out of touch because he asks his readers to admire beautiful but perhaps unwearable shoes?
Answer: No. The goal of the Manolo at his humble shoe blog is to entertain and to educate, to share with his readers that which the Manolo loves the most, beautiful shoes.
May 8th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Well said, Manolo! I would never be able to actually wear the Alexander McQueen sandal with the 4 3/4″ heel, but it is certainly beautiful and I most definitely enjoy looking at it.
May 8th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
Bravo! Fashion is art, and I appreciate looking at it even though my own wardrobe is often boring and my shoes definitely often quite fugly, as I have the misfortune to have really bad feet. But I love the fantasy of beautiful shoes and clothes and enjoy fashion magazines and the superfantastic shoe blog because the perspective is so interesting!
May 8th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
One question I must ask. Does one need to have an eating disorder to show the beautiful, impossible shoes? Non, non, non!!! Would the fanciful, unwearable clothes look any worse on a size 6 or forfend! a size 8? I think not! I really don’t expect the fashion rags to show everything in the average US size of 14/16 but watching 20 somethings that are 5′ 8″ tall nibbling on 5 almonds for lunch because they are a size 4 and “fat” says something about perceptions.
May 9th, 2008 at 7:26 pm
Many poorly-thought-out clothes look gorgeous on the hanger and horrible on the body. A girl such as you describe (skinny, tall, no personality) is as close as possible to a clotheshanger. Thus, perfect for displaying the poorly-thought-out clothing. I have no objection, but if a designer fears showing clothes on a woman-shaped woman I generally assume that is because they look horrible on real people.
The last McQueen show was perfection from beginning to end in my opinion, and I would hate to ask him to be more realistic. It is art and entertainment as much as anything, and very valuable for that. Same goes for certain Vogue editorials. If the market can support that kind of art I am all for it. I can’t afford the clothes, but then I can’t afford my own Gerhard Richter painting either, and that doesn’t mean I resent him for selling them. Or that I wouldn’t go see them in a museum.
May 10th, 2008 at 6:24 am
I just want to weigh in regarding super skinny girls. Some of us are just built like that. I’m a size 8 (uk) but for ten years I was a size 6 despite eating more food than the average person. Some of us skinny people have fast metabolisms and there’s not a whole lot we can do about it.
It’s only since becoming a size 8 that I’ve felt like I can wear more revealing clothing. As a size 6 i never wore anything that’d display my arms/legs because I hated the cruel insults about how I had an eating disorder, when in fact I didn’t.
I’d like to see other people wearing long sleeves and trousers in the height of summer to see how it feels. Or how about the fact that it’s hard as hell to find clothes that fit properly? If you’re not petite in height as well as size it’s a real pain shopping for clothes. Trousers are never long enough and tops ride up the stomach. For the normal people being skinny is a thoroughly miserable ezperience.
May 13th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
Although I agree with the majority of what you write here, Manolo, I’d like to dispute your analogy between the publishing of anorexic 14-year olds in fashion magazines and of expensive cars in car magazines. For a car buff, the specs of the latest sports car can be both entertaining and motivating - even if said car buff never buys said car, he or she can always aspire to it, and there’s nothing wrong with that. On the other hand, it is healthy for women to aspire to look like anorexic 14 year old? It doesn’t entertain me to see emaciated children modelling designer clothing… and if it motivates, is that a good thing? Most women do not have the natural body type to look like a fashion model, and to say that it’s motivation is only forcing women who are beautiful as they naturally are to think that the only way a woman can be fashionable is if she looks like an Auschwitz survivor.