Swinging London From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Swinging London is a catchall term applied to a variety of dynamic cultural trends in the United Kingdom (centred in London) in the second half of the 1960s. It was a youth-oriented phenomenon that emphasized the new and modern. It was a period of optimism and hedonism, and can be described as a cultural revolution. One of the catalysts was the recovery of the British economy after the post-World War II period of austerity and rationing which lasted through much of the 1950s. Journalist Christopher Booker, one of the founders of the satirical magazine, Private Eye, recalled the "bewitching" character of the swinging sixties: "there seemed to be no one standing outside the bubble, and observing just how odd and shallow and egocentric and even rather horrible it was"[1]. "Swinging London" was defined by Time magazine in its issue of April 15, 1966 and celebrated in the name of the pirate radio station Swinging Radio England that began transmissions shortly after the publication appeared. However, the term "swinging" (in the sense of hip or fashionable) had been used since the early 1960s, including by Norman Vaughan in his "swinging/dodgy" patter on Sunday Night at the London Palladium. In 1965, Diana Vreeland, editor of Vogue magazine, declared that "London is the most swinging city in the world at the moment." [2] Later that year, the American singer Roger Miller had a hit record with England Swings, which presented a stereotypical picture of England, with lyrics such as "Bobbies on bicycles, two by two." •
Music Already heralded by Colin MacInnes' 1959 novel Absolute Beginners, the period of Swinging London was underway by the mid 1960s, and included music by The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and other artists from what was known in North America as the British Invasion. This music was heard in the United Kingdom over pirate radio stations such as Radio Caroline, Wonderful Radio London and Swinging Radio England.
Fashion During the time of Swinging London, fashion and photography were featured in Queen magazine, which drew attention to the ideas of Mary Quant. The fashion model Twiggy was another icon of Swinging London, and may have been the world's first supermodel. Twiggy has sometimes been called the "the Queen of mod," a label she shared with others, such as Cathy McGowan (who hosted the television rock show, Ready Steady Go! from 1964 to 1966).[citation needed] Mod-related fashions such as the miniskirt stimulated the rise of fashionable shopping areas such as Carnaby Street and the Kings Road, Chelsea.
Film
James Bond: poster for Casino Royale, 1967 Gerald Harper and Juliet Harmer (top left) in Adam Adamant Lives! (cover of VHS video, 1991) The 1966 film Blowup, by Michelangelo Antonioni, both celebrates and mocks the Swinging London period. Other films about Swinging London included The Knack...and How to Get It (1965), Alfie (1966), Georgy Girl (1966), Up the Junction (1967) and Smashing Time (1967). The character James Bond was seen in many movies, including the comedy version of Casino Royale (1967). The Swinging London period has been parodied in the 1990s Austin Powers films.
Television One television series that reflected the spirit of Swinging London was The Avengers. The BBC Television show Take Three Girls (1969) is noted for Liza Goddard's first starring role, an evocative folk-rock theme song ("Light Flight" by Pentangle), and for many scenes in which the heroines were shown dressing or undressing. In an episode of BBC's Adam Adamant Lives!, Adamant (Gerald Harper), an Edwardian adventurer who had been suspended in time since 1902, was told firmly, "This is London, nineteen sixty-six — the swinging city."[3]
Symbols The British flag, the Union Jack, became a potent symbol, assisted by events such as England's home victory in the 1966 World Cup. The Mini-Cooper car (launched in 1959) was used by a fleet of mini-cab taxis highlighted by advertising that covered their paintwork.
] Bibliography
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Nuttall, Jeff (1968). Bomb culture. MacGibbon & Kee. ISBN 0-261-62617-5. Levin, Bernard (1970). The Pendulum Years. Jonathan Cape. ISBN 0-224-61963-2. Melly, George (1970). Revolt into Style. Allen Lane. ISBN 0-713-90166-7. Sandbrook, Dominic (2006). White heat: A history of Britain in the swinging sixties. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-72452-1. Sandbrook, Dominic (2005). Never had it so good: A history of Britain from Suez to the Beatles. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-86083-2.
Mary Quant Innovative, creative, bold and brash. Sixties fashion belonged to London, England. The Brits set the tone and the world followed. What we wear has always defined us to some degree. At the very least, it can indicate economic status, but always before within certain confines of convention. Historically, a uniformity of dress created a homogeneous population. The 1960s ushered in an attitude of "anything goes" and reflected the shifting politics of the day. "Do your own thing" applied to clothes as well. The fashion revolution was youth oriented and youth driven and began in the streets rather than the old line couture houses. The Baby Boomers were coming of age. The boutique clothing store emerged in the 1960s as "the happening" place to shop. They were fun and hip and young people felt more comfortable shopping there. No geography was more famous for swinging boutiques than Carnaby Street and Kings Road in London. Not to be left out of the trend, Paraphernalia opened in 1965 on Madison Avenue in New York. Color played a big role in defining the look. The muted and pastel palette of Fifties fashions gave way to bright, bold color often splayed in geometric patterns. From daywear to Day Glo in less than a decade. Art, usually Pop Art infiltrated fashion as works of art translated from canvas into fabric. Below left, Yves St. Laurent's interpretation of Pier Mondrian's rectangles. A word about the word - Mod. Mod for modern, which in its purest use meant minimalist. Arguably there is nothing minimal about most Mod fashion, but that is the origin. Left Top - Pompon trimmed pantdress. Arnel acetate, rayon. Large white collar edged with braid. $14.00 Bottom - A-line shift daintily trimmed with cotton lace at hemline, sleeve edges. Sleeves have gathered detail - slightly flared. Round neckline. Fortrel polyester. $9.00 Right Top -2 tone crepe dress of acetate-rayon. Sleeveless bodice bonded to acetate tricot for shape retention. White cowl collar, box pleated skirt. $13.00 Bottom - Boat neck a-line dress has contrast stitching at neck and down fornt. Diagonal weave Fortrel polyester. $20. Hat $6.89
Where a Victorian woman not only would cover her own legs but those of her piano as well, a hundred years later in the Sixties women exposed as much of her legs as her body shape permitted. Some controversy surrounds who invented the miniskirt, but Andre Courreges usually gets the
credit. Yet it was Mary Quant who popularized the swinging Sixties look and edged the miniskirt to mainstream. Miniskirt lengths tended to vary by continent. In America the more conservative 4-5 inches above the knee reigned but in London, 7-8 inches or more was considered hip. Mary Quant opened a boutique named Bazaar in Chelsea back in 1955. This is the beginning of what would be called the "London Look." Her miniskirts and colored tights challenged the fashion world to move in a new direction. By entering into an agreement with J.C. Penneys to do four collections a year, from which these four pictures derive, she made mod fashions affordable and available to the masses. Mary Quant is also responsible for hot pants and the "Lolita" or baby doll look seen in the phot at the top of this page. From London, the mod look spread around the world's fashion centers. Below, Mary Quant having her hair done by stylist Vidal Sassoon, who originated her hairdo, known as the bob, a short, angular hairstyle cut on a horizontal plane. (See also Hair Style)
Twiggy Dubbed "The Face of 1966" Twiggy dominated fashion photography. She was on the cover of every major fashion and teen magazine. Her boyish look was the one to emulate. Young Leslie Hornsby was teased as a child about being skinny - thin as a twig, they said. Thus the name, Twiggy.
Rudi Gernreich Austrian Rudi Gernreich first came into public view in 1964 with a daring topless swimsuit, not pictured here for obvious reasons. The dress at left displays the 1960s fascination with cutouts and vinyl, while the one at right is a wool maxi-dress, as they were called. The model is Peggy Moffit and she worked exclusively for Gernreich in the 60s and 70s.
There were also maxi-coats, a neccessity to keep all the 1960s exposed legs warm! Buy From Amazon Book - The 60's: Mods & Hippies (20th Century Fashion)
Book - The Mini-Mod Sixties Book
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