Disruptive fashion
Trends come and go; that is the nature of fashion. We crave novelty and freshness in what we wear but because new looks are generally introduced within an accepted set of expectations we can’t consider them disruptive, no matter how much outrage they provoke.
However when fashion changes fundamentally for reasons aside from our appetite for novelty, things become interesting. Fashion movements stemming from deep social unrest or that make a political statement can be considered disruptive. In this piece I outline three disruptive fashion movements that significantly changed the way we dress.
Freedom for women
European women have worn all manner of shapeshifting undergarments at different times including bustles, crinolines and extreme corsetry. Though impediments to movement, they were indispensable for women wanting (or needing for financial reasons) to remain ‘within society’. And as society, prior to the twentieth century, expected a ‘lady’ to be at home undertaking sedentary activities, the restricted movement was mostly tolerated.
In the late nineteenth century, women began to engage in more freedom and physical activity - cycling, tennis, golf, skating, croquet or even going shopping instead of ordering in - so clothing needed to accommodate more freedom of movement. Queen Alexandra sometimes wore sportswear such as tailored riding habits as daywear so inevitably more relaxed fashions filtered down to others.
Advocates of Dress Reform and the Rational Dress Society, who moved largely in literary and artistic circles, already supported a move away from what they considered dangerously unhealthy fashion due to its restrictive corsetry. Liberty in London supplied this group with flowing rather than restrictive dresses but this trend was not immediately adopted by women in the general population.
Eventually more women sought not only physical, but political freedom too, via education, employment and the continuing campaign for women’s suffrage. Fashion evolved accordingly, despite a brief contrary trend of tight hobble skirts, that even suffragettes wore so as not to attract negative attention.
In the early twentieth century several French designers introduced the Empire line style to the benefit of all women. The ‘waist’ was raised to just under the bust, offering a more fluid silhouette and softer drape. The corset could then become less rigid and more flexible. With the outbreak of World War One and reliance on women performing ‘men’s jobs’, skirts flared and hemlines rose to calf level. Not only did this allow smooth and comfortable movement but it meant women could get in and out of their own clothes independently instead of relying on assistance - true freedom!
2. Resistance fashion and street style influence
The Beat Generation was sometimes referred to as the post-war dropout or ‘beaten down’ generation, and emerged from an American literary group. Jack Kerouac is a well known name amongst the Beat Generation, as are his male contemporaries. However there were women too such as Joanne Kyger and Denise Levertov who questioned conventional society and its focus on materialism. This scrutiny followed the most affluent period of American history, due to profits amassed during World War Two, and (conversely) years of austerity in the UK and Europe, again due to war.
The Beats were young and valued self expression and loved modern jazz. Their ideals and clothing (particularly their preference for black) were closely aligned to post-war French Left Bank existentialists. Their fashion choices were practical and comfortable and included things such as:
Turtlenecks
Biker jackets
Anoraks
Shorter skirts
Black jeans
Ankle boots
This style was in stark contrast to the more formal, showy and clearly gendered mainstream fashions of that period but this look spread became influential, soon spreading across the western world.
Yves Saint Laurent was one of the first high end, established designers to take inspiration from the young people’s street style, and this influence began with the Beats. This was a cutting edge move as high end fashion previously trickled down to the masses; but this was the first time street style bubbled up to influence the haute couture world.
As always, fashions evolve, and the hippy look was the next resistance style popularised in the 1960s. Like their predecessors, the Beats, hippies also rejected western values and materialism. In align with their interest in human rights, hippies looked to fashion influences from non-western cultures and incorporated items such as beads, flowing maxi dresses, flat sandals, headscarves, kaftans and ponchos into their look.
Androgynous items such as jeans, t-shirts and trouser suits were all popular and were an outward expression of questioning gender roles and promoting newfound sexual freedom for women, thanks to the new contraceptive pill. This particular development made it easier still to resist all that the bourgeois offered.
3. Luxury vs conscious consumerism
From the 1980s onwards, the world witnessed a return to middle class bourgeois living. A renewed appetite for luxury items and greater wealth accumulation was evident, along with a denigration of community values and education.
People began to wear ‘brands’ as though to demonstrate they were ‘in the know’ but a desire for novelty also prevailed. New names and faces sprung up through spots on reality TV or simply from being constantly photographed. As this new style of fame seemed within reach, the idea that anyone could be a ‘celebrity’ soon took hold.
This propelled the selfie trend, and with it, the hunger for more clothing. We were already wearing inexpensive Asian imports (ironically sometimes sporting a luxury logo) but with the creation of the self-made celebrity, the addiction for both luxury items and fast fashion really took hold.
As demand increased, garment suppliers’ contracts became difficult for them to fulfil. As a result, clothes production was hastened and became second-rate; seams were insecure, buttons didn’t hold, garments lost their shape, dyes became cheaper and quickly faded, fabrics pilled more readily and zips failed to zip. Factories also took shortcuts with waste disposal, often at great cost to the environment.
As for the machinists making our clothes, their skills were devalued and they were expected to produce more in less time. Hours increased, breaks were infrequent and doors were locked to keep workers from leaving sub-standard factories. We now acknowledge that the working conditions of those making our cheap clothes are akin to slavery.
This has precipitated a change in the way many of us style ourselves; we now embrace conscious consumerism. To continually buy new clothes is no longer admired, instead it is scorned. Vintage and secondhand is valued. There is a return to making and mending our own clothes, or arranging for alterations to be done instead of discarding otherwise good clothing.
Influential publications have embraced this conscious consumerism. For example, Vogue appointed a sustainability editor and The Guardian fashion editor discusses mixing new with old and sometimes doesn’t discuss ‘new’ at all! Fashion festivals also have a significant focus on sustainability. These considerable moves tell us conscious consumerism is here to stay.
Disruptive fashion generally begins with several movements in different parts of the world merging to form a new zeitgeist. These might promise new freedoms in lifestyle, sexuality or politics that are at variance with the dominant culture.
Early adopters of disruptive fashion movements are to be admired as defiance of the dominant culture risks widespread ridicule or social ostracism. For a person of independent means, who has no financial need to engage in the workforce or for someone who is happy to live outside of mainstream society’s expectations, this is no doubt easier. But history shows us we have some really courageous souls to thank for the sartorial freedom we have today.