Clothing of Subcultures

I always seem to update this thing when I'm exhausted. And it's not just at night, either.

I've realized that the topics I enjoy discussing most pertain to the fashion of subcultures - nerds and geeks, laymen, indie/hipster, feminist, communist, etc. Pretty cool.

Whenever someone asks me what I study, they don't seem to understand exactly. "So are you like, a designer?" "No, not really." "What do you think of this spring's new lineup?" "I haven't even seen it, to be honest." "Oh my God, don't you love the new Dolce and Gabana JLo wore to that event?" "Doesn't Dolce and Gabana produce fashion ads that submissively advocate sexual abuse?" These are the things I contemplate on a daily basis.

Because to be honest, I'm not interested in couture. I'm not interested in design aesthetics, unless they pertain to the feelings of the viewer and why they feel that way. I think that the fashion collections of the rich and famous are pretty to look at, but really don't say much about fashion except for the fact that everyone tries to imitate certain looks because of what they deem is "in style" (why don't they just decide for themselves what they are doing to wear?).

"We have a lot of things like ball gowns and fancy clothing, because that is all that has survived," remarked Jan Hiester, curator of textiles at the Charleston Museum. "Old, rich people save their clothing. Regular people like us, don't."

But it's the clothing of regular people, and people who set themselves apart from the rest, that I really enjoy and think are interesting. How their individual style has shaped the way people think of them based on their clothing, this eternal identity, is really very cool. I think it's the clothing of the everyday wearer that expresses the most information about ourselves that is the kind of stuff people should be talking about.

Phrase association - Republican. Sportsfan. Toddler. White Trash. Valley Girl. Nerd. Maid.

We can all picture the kind of outfit associated with these stereotypes. What does that say about the message those kinds of people want to send out? And more importantly, what does it say about us as a society for making assumptions like those?

The gears are clicking...