Authored by Jin Lam*
Abstract
Fashion has been acted as different roles in past centuries. Fashion is not only a product, but also a trend, culture and art. Besides, concept of art in fashion is related to the aesthetic of inspirations and design, and presentation method is one of the most important aspects affecting its fashion aesthetic. The simplest and best way to present fashion or clothing is to dress them. In recent years, fashion presentation is no longer limited to the presentation of typical models, but also by fashioning icon and fashion icon, and all of them are able to create different styles of fashion aesthetic. Fashion aesthetic can be affected by different elements, and body shape is one of the most influential elements as the main purpose of clothing is designed for human body. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationships of fashioning icon and fashion icon to body aesthetic in fashion presentation. The specific objectives are to: (i) discover the critical elements of fashioning icon and fashion icon, (ii) analyse the relationship between body shape and fashion aesthetic in fashion presentation, (iii) study the fashion presentation of non-typical sized models and celebrities, and (iv) explore the demand of non-typical sized models or presenters in fashion presentation. A qualitative research method was adopted and a questionnaire survey with open-ended questions was chosen as a means to collect respondents’ views on the body shapes of fashioning icon and fashion icon on fashion aesthetic. The study will be resulted in understanding the relationships of fashioning icon, fashion icon, and body aesthetic in fashion.
Keywords: Body aesthetic; Fashioning icon; Fashion icon; Fashion presentation
Introduction
In the ancient century, fashion was only considered as clothing which was only one of human needs in daily life such as, protecting the human bodies, and representing the forms and diversities of religions and their social and cultural contexts. “Clothing… helps identify people’s personal attributes, social affiliations, cultural values, and place in history” [1]. In recent centuries, the fashion concept is developed in modern society; clothing is not just a need and becomes a trend [2]. Fashion industry performs the most attractive view of clothing to ingratiate consumer culture through fashion presentation. The influence of raising consumer culture in fashion is not only in body-related products, but also the presentation method. “Clothes mean nothing until someone lives in them” [3] and “on the fashion runway, models sell the clothes and play to the cameras to sell themselves” [4]. The modelling industry is always due with body aesthetic through visual presentation in the fashion field.
In the twenty-first century, the professional models – fashioning icons, are not the only representatives in displaying fashion, but the celebrities – fashion icons, such as actors, singers and television presenters become another dominant force of presenting fashion by fashion brands and designers. Body aesthetic in fashion has been expanded but not limited to a typical body shape, and different body shapes of celebrities have been made huge influences on promoting fashion brands and products. On the other hand, some fashion influencers such as blogger, You tuber and Instagrammer also presents their own ideal fashion concepts through individual social media platforms. The relationship between fashion and body aesthetic through fashion presentation has been influencing each other to a great extent.
The aim of this study is to investigate the relationships of fashioning icon and fashion icon to body aesthetic in fashion presentation. The specific objectives are to: (i) discover the critical elements of fashioning icon and fashion icon, (ii) analyse the relationship between body shapes and fashion aesthetic in fashion presentation, (iii) study the fashion presentation of non-typical sized models and celebrities, and (iv) explore the demand of nontypical sized models or presenters in fashion presentation.
Relationships between Fashion, Body and Aesthetic
Aesthetic of fashion and body have been widely discussed in fashion literature, such as the development of dress [5], the dressing aesthetic [6], the body aesthetic [7], or related to the aesthetic labour industry [8]. Most studies mainly focus on either fashion aesthetic or body aesthetic, but studies on both areas are relatively less covered. When we discuss aesthetic of fashion, body is indispensable. “Attention to dress is inseparable from attention to the body” [9]. Fashion and body have a parallel development. History of body aesthetic in fashion is a blueprint of fashion future. For example, corset was a popular item in the sixteenth and seventeenth century, and “the external bodice corset in its many forms also continually resurfaced throughout the nineties, just as it had in the 1970s and 1980s” [5]. Therefore, it is important to understand the relationship between fashion and body, also the historical development of fashion attitude in body aesthetic. The iconic fashion people present clothing through their body, and they present the aesthetic of fashion and body shape created by the designer, stylist or owns self at the same time.
Fashion is defined as “a bodily adornment” [9]. “Unclothed body in particular have been traditionally regarded as lacking and unfinished entities” [2]. Fashion and body definitely have a close relationship [10]. Aesthetic is “a general theory of sensory knowledge” [11], and a “shaped feeling and sensitive perception” [1]. It is no doubt that purpose of being a body adornment is a sensory experience in decorating the body in resulted of a beautiful body. Clothing is associated with different design elements, such as colour, shape, line, pattern and texture, the body is linked with silhouette, form, and shape. “The dressed person is a gestalt that includes the body, all direct modifications of the body itself” [5].
Body aesthetic is a relationship between clothing and body and they mutually influence each other. Our bodies are the aspects of ourselves which we present to the world, and clothing is an artificial modification of that presentation process, and is used to change the visual appearance of body shape [12]. It is because our body is part of clothing and the appearance of human is arranged by the interaction of clothing and body of wearer [1]. For example, without shoulders and collarbones, the complete look of an off-shoulder silhouette cannot be seen. Thus, body is the only way to present the aesthetic of clothing and clothing is one of the simple ways to beautify the body. Therefore, body and clothes have an indivisible relationship in fashion aesthetic. “Garments required conveying an appearance of shape for aesthetic” [13].
Fashioning Icon
Fashion changes rapidly and fashion trends are the guideline what we dress for different periods. Fashion designers promote a particular style or item of clothing in a certain period which determines the dress of people. Some designers have muse to inspire their designs. For example, muse of Paul Poiret (1879-1944) was his wife Denise Boulet. Normally, the muse becomes the image in fashion collection or brand, sometimes as well as an icon. Apart from the muse as the inspiration and icon, in order to promote the brand and collection, fashion designers also choose other people to wear their clothes. Those who are chosen dressed in the particular style or item of clothing that designed and sponsored by fashion designers or brand, become the fashioning icons, such as model and celebrity (singer, actor and athlete, etc.). Model delivers the “commercial practice that commodifies the model’s embodied self and delivers it to clients in the form of a look” [14]. For celebrities, their “status can be attributed to a whole continuum of people within the public eye, from high-status, glamorous or skilled individuals through to the most infamous” [3]. As celebrity is famous among public, they are one of the tools in promoting fashion, so as to become the fashioning icon of the brand.
The imperfect Kate Moss is perfect
Kate Moss was discovered by Sarah Doukas when she was a teenage at fourteen. Sarah Doukas introduced her to Corinne Day who photographed the first magazine cover of Kate Moss for ‘The Face’ magazine in UK. The photographs on magazine that even Kate commented herself were weird and ugly. By contrast, Marc Jacob commented “the image of Kate Moss by Corinne Day… really changed fashion” [15]. John Galliano also chose Kate as one of the models to present his spring/summer collection in 1990, even the fitting of Kate took lots of time regarded to her non-typical model size.
When the Calvin Klein campaign was launched in media and public in 1992, it propelled the career of Kate Moss. She soon became a fashioning icon in other Calvin Klein campaigns, such as jeans, underwear and fragrance. At the same time, Calvin Klein was saved by Kate Moss. The sales in jeans and division of Calvin Klein had double-digit expansion, and Klein credited with the thirteenth annual award of the Council of Fashion Designers of America. The photographs in campaigns presented the real, purity of Kate Moss which satisfied the pursuit of public reality [16]. The comments on image of Kate Moss among fashion industry, media and public defined as cool, wild, waif and grunge. It also inspired ‘Harper’s Bazaar’ for its first fashion article which featured Kate as ‘wild, fashion breaks the rules’ in 1992. Controversy on Kate image in Calvin Klein campaign raised the attention from the fashion industry and public, and produced huge presentation chances for Kate on fashion campaigns, magazines and shows, such as ‘Dolce & Gabbana’, ‘Chanel’, ‘Anne Klein’, ‘Vivienne Westwood’, ‘Versace’, ‘Harper’s Bazaar’, ‘Vogue’ and ‘Elle’, etc.
Kate Moss’s personal dressing style made a huge impact in the nineties and noughties. Her style was described as “unprecedented, an exhilarating mixes of backstage glamour and postmodern minimalism, seemingly within reach for any girl on the street” [15]. Her street girl style was slip dresses, little black party dresses, tight jeans, tank tops and a new fashion style was a kind of natural lifestyle in daily life. Kate Moss was “an icon of popular culture” [16] which included fashion, music, art and photograph.
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