Rukhshar Edibam BA(Hons) FASHION DESIGN, ITM-IFDT: History of Fashion-week 8(essay)

WEEK 8...

Was when we had to write a 1000 words and above essay on the same topic given for the ppt. Using pointers, we had to write the essay and accompany it with pictures to make it more interesting.

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF

STYLE ICONS IN THE WEST AND EAST DURING THE 1960S.

The reason for me to select the 1960s is that the whole trend of miniskirts that came in during the 60s is very famous today amongst young girls, optical art that was introduced then is something that we come across even today and illusions are something that I’d love to work with. The major area covered in this essay is the style icons of the east and the west.

Clothing during the 1960’s was characterised by liberation from constraints and taboos. Young people were allowed to adopt unconventional clothing styles, and the textile industry adapted accordingly. The catchword for advertisers and the media was ‘youth’. The prime example of the trend was the miniskirt fashion. Jeans, sweaters and t-shirts became universal dress for the young in their late teens and early twenties, who modelled themselves mainly on pop stars. Towards the end, long hair came into fashion. Loud colours and new types of materials such as plastic film and coated fabrics appeared.*[1] 1960’s in the west was known as the swinging 60s and is associated with the birth of British pop music and fashion. The 60s featured a number of diverse trends. Women’s fashion in the 60s was all about breaking the rules. Gone were the restrictive dresses as women expressed more individuality and freedom in their clothing.

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In the middle of the decade, the box shaped PVC dresses and the go go boots were popular.

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the widely popular bikini came into fashion in 1963 after being featured in the musical ‘The Beach Party’.

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Space travel and abstract also influenced the fashion scene. In 1964, French designer Andre Courreges introduced the ‘space look’. Optical art and the space look brought a futuristic fashion with geometrical patterns and designs.

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Mary Quant invented the mini skirt and Jackie Kennedy introduced the pillbox hat, both becoming extremely popular.

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False eyelashes were brought in by the first supermodel Twiggy.

While focusing on colours and tones, accessories were of less importance.

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The hippie movement also exerted a strong influence on ladies clothing style, including the bell bottom pants, tie and dye and paisley prints.*[2]

Suddenly the op art patterns started appearing on everything from clothes to advertisements, stationary, furnishing fabrics.

http://www.op-art.co.uk

In India, the 60s was a decade when you were constantly told what you could not do. The decade began promisingly with seemingly impossible dreams fulfilled. People, both men and women, at least in movies wore very tight clothes. The tight salwars worn by women then would have a slit at the back to give easness for walking. The hippie craze that began in the west hit India in the early 70s and the person who capitalized on it was Bollywood actor Dev Anand with his ‘Hare Rama Hare Krishna’.

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People would keep long hair which was called the hippy cut. In 1967, Sharmila Tagore appeared in a swimsuit in ‘An Evening in Paris’, which then was something very bold. *[3]

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One of the most popular style icons of the 60s in the west was Jacqline Kennedy, wife of J.F Kennedy (U.S president). Born Jacqline lee bouvier in New York in 1929. The girl who would eventually become the wife of the world’s most famous man showed strong fashion sense since a very young age. Socialite, Wife, Mother, First Lady and a successful Editor,Jacqueline Kennedy, above all of these, is remembered for her style, elegance, and grace. English Fashion and Portrait photographer Cecil Beaton photographed the Bouvier sisters as debutantes for a Feature in American Vogue. As First Lady, Jackie was thrust into the spotlight. She was popular for style of clean suits, knee length skirts, 3/4 sleeves on notch-collar jackets, sleeveless A-line dresses, above-the-elbow gloves and famous pillbox hats.

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Whereas in India, Maharani Gayatri Devi, Rajmata of Jaipur was known for her personification of beauty, grace, charm and elegance. She was listed among the world’s 10 most beautiful women by vogue magazine. Mentioned in the Guinness book of records for having the most expensive wedding in the 1940’s, her nuptials had so many guests That her father’s palace n Bengal could not accommodate everyone. Her presents included a blue Bentley, a two seater Packard and a mansion in the Himalayas. Her chic saris, bold blouses and breath-taking accessories were a rage. She chose the best brands of the day and was often compared to former US first lady and style icon Jacqueline Kennedy. Even in those days she had had a lavish grand wedding just like Jacqueline Kennedy’s wedding. Both of them had a lot of similarities due to which they used to be compared. Both of them wore a similar hairstyle, both were married to men who ruled the nations, both were extremely rich and had their lavish expenses. Sometimes, Gayatri Devi would wear similar looking coats as Jackie. Both were very popular style icons of their times.

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Bollywood actor Dev Anand was the Indian heartthrob. Every man wanted to look like him. He scripted a fashion statement with his scarves, mufflers and jackets and his signature puff, inspired by his childhood idol Gregory Peck. The black suit which was popular even in the west, was followed by him, but was banned from wearing it in public as his Female fans started sending him blood written letters after he appeared in it in public.

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Actress Sadhana, besides becoming the fashion icon for young Indian girls with her specific hair style, still known as “Sadhana cut”, became famous as Mystery Girl with her three suspense thriller films.Sadhana describes how she got her famous bangs:

“I had a broad forehead, which showed prominently in photo tests. It would then be covered with a patch of hair. When we were about to start Love in Shimla, the director (RK Nayyar, whom she later married) said the patch wouldn’t do. Those days Audrey Hepburn’s Roman holiday (1953)(in which she sports a fringe) had just released. So I was promptly rushed off to a Chinese hairdresser and given a fringe. It became famous as the ‘Sadhana cut’.”Sadhana's name and persona conjures up images of stylish Sophistication and trend setting fashion statements. She was the queen of style for the Indian women of the 60s. Sadhana is at the top of every mention of style and fashion in Bollywood. A generation of Bollywood actresses copied Sadhana in mannerism, look, and style. Sadhana possessed that intangible 'star quality' that manifested in an ethereal and enticing screen presence.

Sadhana's initial popularity centred on a teenage audience who were looking for something new. Sadhana was fresh, modern, and most of all hip. She was someone the children of the new rising middle class of an increasingly modern Indian could identify with. She became the darling of the youth of India.*[4]

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No other rock and roll group had more influence on the youth as did the Beatles. Music, culture, lifestyles, hairstyles, clothing styles and attitudes all changed because of this remarkable band that emerged out of Liverpool England in the early 1960s. The Beatles were George Harrison, John Lennon, Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney.

When Brian Epstein became the Beatles' manager, he convinced the boys to wash their hair and retire the leather. Therefore, they dressed in dark, matching, impeccably tailored suits, and eventually, the famous Pierre Cardin collarless number. The Beatle mop-top became such an issue that the Beatle wig became the hottest novelty since the hula hoop. The Gandhi jacket worn by them became very popular amongst both, men and women. The jacket originated from India when

Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru got in the whole fashion in the late 1940s.

Influence of 1960s today: -

Optical art which came In during the 1960s is Still being used today By designers. The most Recent was at the New York fashion week by Marc Jacobs’s spring/summer 2013.