Thus, here is an extract from the fabulous tale I call life.
Last week, as part of a short course on Style and Culture at the LCF, we were taken to the V&A to view 'From Club To Catwalk', an exhibition on the counter cultures of the late 70s and 80s and their ascendance into the high fashion world. As a generality, the 80s era has never been a personal favourite of mine due to my dislike of pop music and my distaste and therefore ignorance of the fashions beyond the leg warmers, neon and perms. And to my delight, I found myself recognising much of its influence in my own style, let alone modern fashion as a whole.
Featuring the works of Galliano, Vivienne Westwood and Alexander Mcqueen I saw past the ugly charicatures I toss aside in fancy dress stores and welcomed the 80s into my heart.
My favourites were the inflatable orange rain coat by Michiko koschino which has filtered its way into my wardrobe by the means of an inflatable back pack (which I naiively thought was a trend heralding from the 90s). Living by the sea I craved its air stuffed arms and plastic hood as a stylish alternative to the lifejacket or lilo. Made a few decades earlier, who knows, the story of Titanic could have turned out very differently...
Another eyecatcher was the ethereal evening dress from Gallianos 'Fallen Angels Collection' of '86 which I could only imagine nymphets and cursed waifs flailing about in and tearing amongst the branches of twilight forests. I knew at that moment that I will only ever marry in that dress, or perhaps simply marry the dress.
The Hard Times look (think Desperately Seeking Susan meets Lady Gaga) was undoubtedly the most in tune to my style, having spotted a studded jacket I was certain had been stolen from my bedroom floor.
Goth, Body wrap and, my favourite, Glam fetish all towere above me in the hall of fashion history, as iconic and influential as the grecian sculptures that flexed their muscled thighs under the same roof.
If one doesn't recognise their own style in the outfitso of the 80s, then they cannot deny the gift it gave us through club culture and diy.
At night, young designers’ imaginations were sparked by a vibrant London club scene. John Galliano recalled, ‘Thursday and Friday at St Martin’s, the college was almost deserted. Everybody was at home working on their costumes for the weekend’. Designer Georgina Godley remembers, 'Young London was all about taking risks and creating something out of nothing through passion and ambition'.
