Final Project Part I

Hip Hop

 

Hip Hop is a movement that centered around music. Music unlike most any other heard before it. One may consider it the Jazz of the 1980’s. Stars who personify this ideal include Missy Elliot, Kayne West, and Sean Puffy Combs. The hip-hop costume has transformed itself over the years. What began as somewhat rough is now a very polished high-end look. Classy and elegant but still somewhat rough around the edges – this can be seen in such hip-hop lines as Sean John.

Punk

 

The late 1970’s saw a movement of rebellion, but unlike that of its late 1960’s counterpart. The punk ideal started with music and revolved around drugs and sex. However, unlike a decade before its message was not peace and love, but more that of anarchy. The punk look is harsh: leather, outlandish spiked hair, and an overall aesthetic of ‘the tough guy’. 

Disco

 

The era of disco came after what is considered to be the mod period. The disco movement, as were many others, fueled by excessive drug use and sex. Although the drugs seemed to vary from decade to decade, the disco era was all about cocaine. Perhaps the most iconic symbol of the era was Studio 54. A nightclub in Manhattan where anyone who was anyone could be found, as well as those ‘wanna-bes’. Stars such as Diana Ross of the Supremes were regulars at Studio 54. 

Hippie

 

The hippie movement really began in San Francisco, in the now iconic Haight district. Their form of dress was designed to contradict that of the establishment. The 1960’s was filled with turmoil from the war in Vietnam to violent campus unrest such as what occurred at Kent State University in Ohio. There were many iconic figures of the day who personified this personality, but Janis Joplin was perhaps the greatest. 

Mod

 

The Mod look was all the rage during the 1960’s. As trends often do, this one too seemed to start in Europe, exemplified by such models of the time as Twiggy. This look has resurfaced again, in a big way, on the runways for Fall 2009. 

Beatniks

 

The beatniks stemmed from downtown Manhattan in neighborhoods such as Greenwich Village and SoHo. They were intellectuals, or at least liked to think of themselves as such. They would sit in coffee houses and discuss philosophy or write poetry. Their form of dress differed from the norm at the time and can be characterized as somewhat dark and brooding.

Teddy Boys

 

The Teddy Boy style began, as many other movements have, in Britain. It was widely popular in London during the 1950’s and was inspired by the Edwardian period. The look was what would now be considered somewhat preppy; very Band of Outsiders.

Zoot Suit

 

A zoot suit is a high waisted – wide legged suit popular in the 1930’s mostly in the African American and Latino communities.  Here is pictured actor Edward Olmos wearing a zoot suit.