It was just last week I listened in on a panel discussion with a few ladies from The British Fashion Council. I know you are probably thinking “Why were you listening to that discussion if you live in Jamaica”, well, I like to stay up to date with happenings in Fashion all over the word which helps me to have insight on everything that is going on and of course for content purposes.
One of the ladies on the panel shared that she feels left out of many decisions just because of her age, even though she was a Pioneer in the industry and a part of why the Fashion Industry is where it is for women. This of course got me thinking as she raised some valid points and I’ve seen this myself in the Fashion Industry. Ageism is something that is prevalent in the Fashion Industry and will probably be here for a long time.
Fashion and Ageism: Out with the Old, In with the New
Ageism has been conceptualized as manifesting in at least three ways. That is, negative attitudes towards older people, old age, and the aging process; age-based discrimination or unfair treatment; and the implementation of practices and policies that amplify these negative stereotypes.
This manifestation particularly targets woman who make up more than half of the industry where they are given an “expiration date”. We as women are obsessed with ageing and the process as we know in a matter of years our time will be “up”, and we will inevitably be replaced by someone younger, unless we are able to fool the world by looking young.
We saw this in the popular “The Devil Wears Prada” where Miranda was being replaced by a seemingly younger Editor, as the magazine wanted to head in a different direction and felt she has carried the Magazine far enough and it was now time for her to hang up her stilettos.
On the other side of things, heading in a different direction and involving younger people can be a great thing. We have seen this to be true in Olivier Rousteing and Virgil Abloh and the way they were able to transform Balmain and Off White respectively. There seems to be no middle ground in this industry and you are either hot (young) or not (old).
Certainly, there are also examples of women who have become famous because of their age, or their celebration of it. Iris Apfel, Baddie Winkle, or Linda Rodin, just to name a few, are important style icons regularly featured in fashion magazines and widely admired for their eccentric appearance. But their fame also bears on their singularity, charisma and wealth which obviously doesn’t (and couldn’t!) apply to everyone.
I do wonder, however, if fashion’s obsession with youth is not also one of its conditions. The current state of fashion is ultimately based on desiring the new—when something grows outdated, it indeed becomes old-fashioned. Consuming new clothes is oftentimes linked with a reinvention of ourselves. Conversely, a dearly loved garment worn many times can suddenly not feel right anymore. Indeed, fashion is very much linked to our sense of time because it carries archival aesthetic information through which we can determine and explore our past selves and previous generations.
It would be great to exist in a world where both old and young can exist side by side and bounce ideas off each other and help to shape and grow the industry in a positive direction.
#Fashion and Ageism: Out with the Old, In with the New
#Fashion and Ageism: Out with the Old, In with the New
#Fashion and Ageism: Out with the Old, In with the New
#Fashion and Ageism: Out with the Old, In with the New
#Fashion and Ageism: Out with the Old, In with the New
#Fashion and Ageism: Out with the Old, In with the New
