Fashion
magazines can be entertaining and inspiring, but they hardly ever write
positively about the gothic subculture or style. The ‘goth trend’ seems to make
a comeback in catwalk and mainstream fashion every once in a while, sporting
black nail polish, black leather, studs and lace. One would expect designers
and writers of fashion magazines to give more credit to their obvious source of
inspiration and to refer to the gothic style in an appreciative way, but instead
they are always quick to add: ‘do make sure not to overdo this look, because
one naturally doesn’t want to look gothic!’. It seems kind of ignorant and
offensive to remind people of this all the time, while simultaneously ‘borrowing’
looks from those very goths they seem to despise. I am reading offensive
comments about goths in (Dutch) magazines all the time and it keeps annoying
me. I do not know whether it’s the same for magazines in other languages
however, so do not hesitate to share your experiences!
As a
consequence, despite my love of fashion photography, I do not often feel
tempted to buy these magazines anymore. Last week however I made an exception
for the September edition of ELLE, mostly out of curiosity. The entire edition
is inspired by the color black and features some amazing photography and very
interesting articles on darker fashion! Still I expected to be somewhat
disappointed by possible references to the gothic subculture…I was prepared for the worst. To
my utter surprise, it did not happen. Quite the contrary: the writers openly
acknowledge they have been inspired by the goth aesthetic and write very
positively about the subculture. The editor (Cécile Narinx) admits being a
regular spectator at the annual ‘Summer Darkness Festival’, the biggest gothic
festival in the Netherlands.
She and her friend love to go what they call ‘goth spotting’, which might sound a little
denigrating, but which she explains is really admiring people in their outfits
and trying to get an impression of all the different styles. Wow, this lady
actually knows about different types of goths…that’s more than I can say for
most people in fashion! To make sure that people are aware of the different
gothic styles, she even wrote an article (‘Oh my goth’) describing a few of
them.
And she’s clearly done her research, mentioning bands like Bauhaus, Rasputina,
Corvus Corax, Collide and Depeche Mode. Marylin Manson and Within Temptation,
the usual goth-clichés, are not even mentioned! In the beginning of the article,
she directs her readers to get over their prejudices right away:
‘Goths,
aren’t those the types that dwell around cemeteries for hours, those depressed,
suicidal teenagers who mean to provoke, preferring to fall asleep in a coffin
at night? Well, no. What makes a goth a goth then?’ [translation by Corin]
She then
goes on explaining about the music, the art, the literature and the of course
the various fashion styles. Of course these classifications are rather stereotypical, but goths themselves tend to use them as well to refer to others. The
greatest benefit of the article is the acknowledgement of a diverse subculture
that is not scary, existing merely to provoke or filled with lunatics, but
beautiful in its dark aesthetic and its diversity. The author did a good job
making this message come across!
Apart from
the article described above, there are plenty of other reasons to buy this
September’s special issue of ELLE magazine:
-
Black
clothing, shoes and accessories galore
-
Beautiful
dark photography
-
Dark
make-up
-
Reviews
of movies and books with a dark theme
-
Article
about your ‘dark side’
-
Article
about dark and gothic inspired fashion on the catwalk (Alexander McQueen,
Gareth Pugh)
- Article about funerals
-
Article
about erotic literature
-
Article
about material arts and other fighting sports
-
Article
about black fashion models
-
Article
about Chanel and the color black
-
Article
about a Dutch actor playing in the HBO series ‘Treme’, which is set in New Orleans
-
Dark,
tribal inspired fashion
For
non-Dutch speakers: I do not know if the UK and US versions of ELLE’s black
issue are similarly appealing and positive towards the gothic subculture,
but I
would say it’s worth checking out!
I recently
ordered a beautiful knit headband from Emi at SuirenWaterLily. It looks great with long hair and
instantly makes ones hairdo much more exciting. Emi has different colors and
designs to choose from and also makes other knit accessories. I’m eager to try
her parandis as well, which especially look great in braids.
