FLASH Issue No.16 Spring 2021

NO.16

spring 2021

THE continuum ISSUE

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STAFF CREDITS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

ASSISTANT FASHION EDITOR

NISHITA NAGA

ALYSSA MORTERUD

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

BEAUTY EDITOR

BAWILA IDRIS

CELIA PATTERSON

INTERIM EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

CULTURE EDITOR

MARINA VERGARA

JACLYN SKRELA

INTERIM CREATIVE DIRECTOR

ASSISTANT CULTURE EDITOR

ELLA BASEMAN

SARAH BARLYN

MANAGING EDITOR

OPINIONS EDITOR

EMMA KOLAKOWSKI

ALANA RAMSAMMY

SOCIAL MEDIA EDITORS

ASSISTANT OPINIONS EDITOR

MARIA KOBLISH & KATRINA STEWART

SYDNEY CHAMPAGNE

FASHION EDITOR

LAYOUT TEAM

SHAYLAH LLOYD

RUBY LEE, KATHRYN SCHULTE, CELIA PATTERSON, ELLA BASEMAN

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spring

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L E T T E R F ROM T H E F ORM E R E D I T OR - NIsh i t a n a g a

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L E T T E R F ROM T H E F o r m e r E D I T OR - IN - C H I E F

I suppose this is where I bid goodbye.

Although not a pitiful goodbye, and one that is all the more sweetened by Continuum.

What I wished to do most in my time at FLASH was create something recognizable.

My initial stint as Editor-in-Chief began with the goal to develop a publication that could be carried on effectively. What I quickly realized was that FLASH’s recognition comes from its ability to almost unify a collection of voices. Perhaps this magazine could represent a student body, but I think in the past two years it has come to represent the goals and desires of budding trailblazers.

When I began writing for FLASH, its most recognizable feature was its Fashion section, and many times, this is what writers come to explore. However, it has been my pleasure to expand the borders of FLASH magazine not only outside of institutional restriction, but outside of a definitive label of “Fashion Magazine”. FLASH is so much more than that. In thinking about who and what we were, we may also be prompted to remember what FLASH was, what it is today, and what it can become.

Continuum empowers its audience to remember what was past, is present, and can be future. If history only repeats itself, when will we learn our lesson?

Continuum embraces transition. The moments we allow fear to cloud our greater judgement are the moments that seem to historically repeat themselves. In uncertain times, understanding our place on a timeline may unearth some much needed lessons or light a fire that can empower us to move forward.

I am looking to my own future, and handing the future of FLASH into very capable hands. In many ways, I once again find myself in the place of a reader – itching to see what comes next.

With Love, Your Former Editor

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F L A S H MAGAZIN E

L E T T E R F ROM T H e c u r r e n t E D I T OR - IN - C H I E F

If you asked me what my future would look like when I first entered college, the answer would be completely different than the reality I live in now. I began as a dancer. My world, and the future I envisioned, was full of pink tights and leotards, pointe shoes, endless hours in the studio, and the piercing glare of my mirrored reflection that, as I was taught, would never be perfect no matter how hard I tried. Dance was my past, present, and future no matter how taxing it was on my body and my mental health –– or so I thought.

During my freshman year I truly started imagining what my future as a dancer might entail, and after much contemplation, that future began to terrify me. Would I be able to fight my perfectionistic tendencies and be okay with the reality that I can never achieve perfection? Would I be able to look in the mirror and not hate the person I see staring back? Would I be able to be judged for my art and not take that criticism as a personal indicator of my own self-worth? As my mental health took a turn for the worse, I realized that this future in the dance world was not one I wanted, nor one that I thought would bring me joy. So I made a change, and that is when I found FLASH. FLASH changed my future, and it continues to change me. This magazine has opened the door to a new world full of creative writing, self-expression, and artistic freedom. I can be who I want to be, say what is on my mind, and create art that means something to me. FLASH encourages me to grow, to flourish. It has taught me how to be more confident in myself and my work. It has brought about a future (and a reality) in which I

believe I can be my authentic self –– a person who loves to write about the world and all the magical, confusing, upsetting, beautiful, complicated things in it.

Life is full of change, for better or for worse, but I believe that change is necessary. Continuum embraces the uncertainty of life, the beauty of change, and the ability to look to the past (with all its flaws and strengths) and realize that those roots are what have made each of us who we are today. Continuum wants you to enjoy your own metamorphosis. Look to the past, acknowledge your history, learn from it, and then grow into a new being ready to step out into the uncertain, scary, yet ultimately beautiful thing we call life.

If you asked me if I would go back and change anything about my life, the answer would be no.

For every moment, good or bad or inbetween, has been a stepping stone to the reality I live in now. My mistakes, my successes, my faults, and my flourishes have all shaped my present and my future. And I love where I am now, and I love where I am going, even if I do not know where that may be yet. The future will always be uncertain, and that is a good thing, because it allows each of us to dream, make wishes, take chances, and remake our worlds.

Do not be afraid to step forth into your future. It is waiting for you to make it your own.

With Love Always, Your New Editor

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U N C R E D I T E D L AYO U T S AND GRAPHICS WERE D O N E B Y T H E C R E AT I V E DIRECTOR

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F L A S H MAGAZIN E

Time is a double-sided coin– time being the coin itself, with our

past and future on either side. As our present becomes past, this double-sided coin of time leads us away from our present to step into the future. As we step into the future, we travel further from who we once were and how we once felt. Nostalgia sweetens the bitterness of this passage of time. Without our say, feelings of sentimentality for the past reveal themselves to us at random. Like a light that flickers on and off, memories spark wistful affections within us for a time, place, or feeling we once occupied.

Nostalgia bridges the gap between our past and our future by allowing us to carry the meanings and feelings brought on by certain memories of our past into a new, forward-moving direction. In this way, nostalgia can be a stabilizing and guiding force in our lives.

Ultimately, feelings of nostalgic longing transform us. As we reflect on Nostalgia contributes a sentimental, positive aura to our lives. The memo-

the past, our present perceptions change. The feelings of sentimentality

ries illuminated to us by affectionate longing unequivocally evoke inherent

brought to us by nostalgia unearth the meanings we attach to our expe-

feelings of joy and comfort. Throughout the pandemic, undoubtedly a time

riences. Anytime I hear the soft tune of “Blackbird,” by The Beatles, I am

characterized by loss, isolation, anxiety, and uncertainty, revisiting televi-

transported back to when I was six years old, dancing around to the song

sion and music from our pasts has helped many feel a sense of calm and

with my dad in the old playroom of my family’s home. I long for this time

distraction from the tragedies brought on by COVID-19.

when I did not have a care in the world, and I could listen to one of my favorite songs and become swirled up in the sweetness of a moving melody. To-

Throughout my quarantine experience, I found that watching a bunch of

day, any time I listen to “Blackbird,” I am reminded of the young child I once

Disney movies from my childhood, from Mulan to Hercules, provided a

was and how I have grown over time. The sheer euphoria I feel from delving

much needed outlet for my mind to escape to, even if only for a little while.

into such meaning inspires me to continue to find music that touches my

I could not help the smile on my face as the sweet memories of watching

soul as warmly as the music from my childhood does. I will forever yearn

the iconic movies from my childhood for the first time came flooding back

to feel the same way I did twirling around my childhood playroom with my

and helped me escape from my inner, pandemic-related anxieties. In this

dad by my side. In this way, perhaps nostalgia serves to offer us hope and

vein, nostalgia can emerge as a coping mechanism to help us transcend

inspiration for the future – it innately deepens our desire to create mean-

the stress of the present moment by encouraging us to remember the joys

ingful memories to look back on as time progresses.

of our past.

I have realized that as I get older, the stress of adulthood progressively Nostalgia can also reveal itself through communal or generational expe-

accumulates within me, and I feel less and less allowed to enjoy the simple

riences. As a child in school, whenever there was a snow forecast for the

things in life. As I put more pressure on myself to get perfect grades and

following day, the halls would flutter with excitement as us kids reminded

precisely plan each step in my future career, I feel as if I am increasingly

each other to sleep with our pajamas inside out and put a spoon under our

losing the sweetness, wonder and excitement that I embodied as a child.

pillows that night— a foolproof plan to ensure a snow day. Assuredly, many

However, whenever nostalgia pokes through my usually frazzled mind, it

teenagers today can fondly think back to this innocent time of hoping and

feels as though it is sweeping away my current anxieties, transporting me

praying that snow would pour from the heavens. With luck on our side,

back to the innocence and sheer simplicity of my non-worries as a child.

we would jump around our living rooms the next morning, screaming, “No

In kind, nostalgia helps me enjoy the little things– the smell of my Omi’s

school! No school!” Nostalgia helps reinforce our sense of social connect-

perfume, the sound of my old dog’s claws clicking on the floor– things I did

edness in this way, granting us the agency to think back to sweet, simpler

not recognize as meaningful until time took them away from me, or rather,

times characterized by a collective naiveté.

me away from them. Accordingly, nostalgia leaves us with a realization and understanding of which moments in our lives hold meaning to us, after long periods of time carry us away from the freshness of these memories.

As the days dwindle into years past, nostalgia helps us realize a sense of personal continuity. It empowers us to assess the precious, joyful memories from our past that we inherently cling to. Nostalgia encourages us to take these meanings and connections with us into the future, proving to us that there is beauty in moving forward. By motivating us to remember the past in our own life, nostalgia reminds us who we have been, emboldens us to reflect on who we feel we are today, and ultimately inspires us to prepare for who we want to be down the road and into the future.

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How Social Distancing Brought Us Closer Than Ever Words by: Emilia Figueroa-Valik

When the huge countdown clock projected behind the band announced it was officially 2020, rainbow confetti exploded all around us, tangling in our hair and twinkling in the stadium lights. After the show, we ended up at a

In the winter of 2019, I found myself in an unusual pre-

house party full of strangers deep in Bed-Stuy where we managed to get

dicament. I had recently discovered that The Strokes, a band

temporary glitter tattoos, scarf down an entire wheel of brie, and do ballet

whose albums I had once painstakingly downloaded onto my

in the middle of a dance circle, among other things. Piling into the back

phone via dubious MP3 applications, were slated to perform at

of an Uber at 5am to get home, I clutched the little piece of confetti I had

The Barclays Center on New Year’s Eve. Naturally, I had to go see

managed to preserve from the show. I felt vindicated by the spontaneity

them. The only problem was with whom? As someone who had

and exhilaration of the night. As we witnessed the unsettling emptiness of

a photo of Julian Casablancas, The Strokes’ lead singer, set as

Manhattan in that darkness just before sunrise, I presumed this moment

her lock screen throughout middle school, I was unwilling to set-

contained that ineffable depiction of youth from all the books and movies--

tle for anyone less than an equally rabid fan to accompany me.

we were invincible and steadfast in our certainty that the only thing lurking

in those desolate streets was the promise of a new adventure.

The solution was Abby, a girl I knew from my former ballet studio.

She was a few years older than me and a level above me in the

Abby and I plotted our Thelma and Louise-inspired escape route over iMes-

school. Maybe it was the mystique of befriending someone older

sage, focusing especially on all the different concerts we would go to once

and thus seemingly more worldly that prompted me to remember

our Thunderbird hit solid ground. Those plans, however, quickly came to

Abby had once, in passing, professed her love for The Strokes. So,

a grinding halt with the news of the pandemic. The warmth of my family

I figured it was worth a shot. A week later, I met Abby in Columbus

home began to feel infuriatingly airless as I reluctantly admitted to myself

Circle for the big night.

there would be no concerts in our future. I was confronted with the realization that it could be a year before we saw each other, let alone have a night

Even though Abby and I hadn’t seen each other in two years, our

like New Year’s again.

intense mutual excitement for the concert seemed to shield us from the pitfalls of awkward small talk and drawn out silences. Descend-

The weeks stretched on, blurring into one another like a plotless version of

ing the stairs to catch the subway to Brooklyn, Abby and I squealed

Groundhog Day. I woke up in the late afternoon for Zoom calls and to com-

like little kids racing to get downstairs on Christmas morning. We

plete all of the assignments I had put off from the day before. I couldn’t

lost our voices screaming out every lyric from our nosebleed seats.

remember the last time I had danced. The most exciting thing I had to look forward to was going grocery shopping with my mom or forcing her to finish Tiger King with me.

After spending weeks at home, several of my friendships slowly withered away into silence. Without the pillar of shared context, to reminisce about crazy party stories or gossip about mutual acquaintances, it seemed as if there wasn’t much to talk about. Yet strangely enough, it was in the depths of this most listless period of lockdown that my friendship with Abby began to change. It was as if the distance quarantine imposed between us, and the uncertainty of when we would next see each other, meant our conversations had no real consequences. We didn’t have to deal with those uncomfortable in-person moments when the expression on someone else’s face tells you your joke fell flat or you attempt to cover up the fact that theirs did. Abby seemed to exist solely as a disembodied voice in my phone or the pixels comprising her cartoon character profile picture. This sense of being immune from any real, palpable judgement enabled us to

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express ourselves about anything and everything.

F L A S H MAGAZIN E The root cause of our newfound closeness was inextricably linked to the quintessential quarantine activity: the long walk. Abby took her walks during midday, or whenever there was the most sunshine, while I preferred to walk at night. The walks began as a brief respite from the suffocating indoors and transformed into a ritual, ultimately punctuating the middle of Abby’s days or the ends of mine. The walks were the only sort of standout activity in the midst of days lacking the reliable structure of college classes and weekend plans.

In the beginning, our communication centered around what was most familiar: articles about The Strokes or songs by them that we had grown to appreciate more since hearing them live. We often would not respond to each other until our respective walk time, when we could put in earbuds and fully listen. As a result, our message thread evolved into a kind of personal diary. I would send Abby fifty messages containing songs, audio messages, TikToks, and random photos, and she would do the same.

Then, at night, I would grab my headphones and start from the beginning.

The appeal of online commu­nication is that it is instantaneous--we can instantly share a song with a friend who lives halfway across the world or let our roommate know what kind of takeout we want for dinner. The ability to bombard someone with text messages or YouTube links is a testament to the way technology can connect us to someone across various online platforms and media types. Abby and I took full advantage of these resources: we made each other TikToks based on our inside jokes, created a collaborative Spotify playlist to share music more easily, and used Snapchat to highlight specific lines in the book passages we sent each other.

One of the most frustrating parts of the pandemic was its sameness.

That fantasy of youth, staying up all night, and waking up in yesterday’s glitter, never seemed more remote from the four walls of my But for the most part, the nature of my communication with Abby was any-

childhood bedroom. Though my friendship with Abby started with

thing but instantaneous. Our tendency to flood each other with messages

one of those idyllic nights, it endured despite never even being able

and respond four or fourteen hours later often felt like a shout into the void.

to see her face-to-face. Now, more than a year later, Abby and I still

But not in the sense that I was alone. Rather, these intervals of silence,

talk everyday in our little intervals. And while the current state of the

where our friendship was completely confined to cyberspace, reinforced the

world does not necessarily permit for the kind of adventures I had

idea that there were no stakes, no reason to hold back. I didn’t have to cu-

hoped to collect, the pandemic has shown me the value of finding

rate or maintain some kind of persona with Abby. I would send her anything

someone with whom I can share things that matter to me without

I found funny, beautiful, or sad and eagerly anticipate her opinion. Likewise,

the fear of coming off too earnest or annoying her. Whether my night

I felt honored to be the person with whom Abby trusted to share the little

ends at 10 pm or 7 am, I am content with the fact that by the time I

gems she held close, whether these were her favorite pieces of classical

wake up, my best friend will be waiting for me.

music or photos of her pesto plant thriving.

Maintaining friendships virtually will likely become the norm in the Nowadays, Abby and I are farther apart than ever. I took a gap year from col-

future, both as a result of the lingering effects of the pandemic and

lege to dance in Budapest, and Abby moved to Florida to continue her ballet

because of our increasing reliance on technology as a means of

training. Nevertheless, our eccentric communication style has persisted in

communication. In my experience, technology will not be the glue

the face of the six hour time difference that staggers our days. When I wake

that holds situational friendships together, nor will it serve as that

up, Abby’s day is just about ending. We have a half hour overlap to talk, and

crucial link in transforming an acquaintance into a friend. But, if you

then it’s just me. I send her audio messages updating her on the drama of

are lucky enough to stumble upon the right person, it can absolutely

the day, how my classes went, and whatever else. We overlap again in the

be a way to make up for lost time and connect you in spite of seem-

late afternoon for several hours. Then, as I’m going to sleep, I know Abby is

ingly insurmountable distance.

sending me a barrage of messages to open in my morning.

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SPECIAL EPISODES GIVE US THE THERAPY SESSIONS WE NEED.

Words by: Sammy Bittman Collage by: Ella Baseman

EUPHORIA’S Solitude, small groups, limited capacity, safety

special episode titled “Part 1: Rue” or “Trouble Don’t Last Al-

measures. Our eyes glaze over hearing these phrases at

ways” aired on December 6 and almost entirely consists of

this point, but TV producers have had to read all the fine

Rue and Ali (Colman Domingo), her sobriety sponsor, sitting

print about what restrictions they must abide by to create

in a diner on Christmas Eve. As per COVID guidelines, the ep-

new content. From Grey’s Anatomy introducing its charac-

isode noticeably contains only two to three characters per

ters to a pandemic-laden world to RuPaul’s Drag Race turn-

scene and mostly takes place in a single filming location.

ing its process of filming during COVID into a documentary,

While Levinson doesn’t literally bring COVID into the world

it seems that TV producers have to address the beast of

of Euphoria, he uses the restrictions to indulge in lengthy,

COVID somehow in order to continue creating safely. HBO’s

character-building dialogue. Rather than charging full steam

hit drama Euphoria (2019-) is no exception with the produc-

ahead with a plot-driven episode, the characters are prompt-

tion of its second season delayed from March 2020 until

ed to consider all they have experienced in an episode-long

later this year. Centered around narrator Rue (Zendaya),

conversation about addiction, forgiveness, the meaning of

who struggles with addiction, the series follows an ensem-

life, and somehow finding hope for the future. It feels as if

ble cast of highschoolers as they navigate sex, drugs, and

Levinson overheard his characters talking and scripted their

mental health. Like many series on HBO, Euphoria’s produc-

raw, uninterrupted conversation—a kind of content TV audi-

tion requires a massive crew and ensemble cast that films

ences are not used to seeing. From the beginning of the epi-

across various locations in California—not exactly COVID

sode, Ali pushes Rue to be honest about the things she feels

friendly. With many series facing criticism for their lack of

are too dark to share. Rue asks Ali if she can tell him some-

regard for safety precautions, finding a balance between

thing, but then she hesitates, fearing the consequences. Ali

safety and creativity is more difficult than ever. Rather than

encourages her until she admits, “To tell you the truth, drugs

pushing the boundaries of these restrictions or leaving au-

are probably the only reason I haven’t killed myself.” The

diences waiting, however, creator Sam Levinson looked at

fear of judgment and pain at her own words is palpable, but

these new rules as a challenge to break the mold of Eupho-

Ali focuses on the importance of her honesty, recognizing,

ria and television entirely with two “special episodes” that

“Now we’re talkin’. Now you’re being real. Now you’re being

occupy a liminal space between the first and second sea-

honest. Because this whole bullsh*t about being a function-

sons. Rather than aiming to entertain us, Levinson crafts a

ing drug addict, about finding balance, that ain’t true. That’s

point of reflection for characters and audiences alike.

a lie.” The repetition in Ali’s words—not only in this dialogue, but throughout the episode—drives home the importance of

How do you adapt a show that is known for its exciting new

introspection. Not only does the dialogue exude authentici-

locations, glittering makeup looks, and complex narrative

ty, but the structure does too. Viewers are forced to remain

style to fit all these restrictions with no season two in sight?

at the diner with them without cutting away to other charac-

According to Levinson, it might not be such a bad idea to be

ters, following their intense conversation in real time.

forced to get your characters alone for a change. The first

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As a result, the audience then finds themselves breathing a sigh of relief when Ali briefly exits to smoke a cigarette.

It is almost too easy to be distracted with so many sources of entertainment at our fingertips today—from social media to millions of series and films. With all of the introspective time COVID-19 quarantine has provided, the idea of taking a vacation from our thoughts is more tempting than ever. Euphoria could easily be distracting with its intense drama and fast-paced plot, but the show takes a different approach, giving viewers permission to pause and think about their own struggles, or the “big things in life” as Ali says.

On January 22, “Part 2: Jules,” or “F*ck Anyone Who’s Not A Sea Blob” aired as the second special episode, focusing entirely on Rue’s best friend and love interest, Jules (Hunter Schafer). Much like “Part 1: Rue,” Jules’ episode noticeably exists within COVID restrictions with its small cast and single location. Similarly, the episode is structured around a therapy session where Jules reflects on the events of the first season without the influence of Rue’s narration. Levinson makes it clear that the audience will be firmly rooted in Jules’ perspective with the two-minute long teaser scene of clips from the first season superimposed onto Jules’ eye, prompting viewers to feel season one in all its emotional glory once again. If this wasn’t enough to set the episode up as an emotional rollercoaster, Lorde’s “Liability” playing over the scene definitely drives it home. Notably, many of the season one clips include shots of Jules, suggesting that the audience is not only going to see Jules’ perspective on others, but will also see the entire series from a new perspective by the end of the episode. It’s an ambitious goal, but Levinson and Schafer—who co-wrote the episode—deliver by using therapy as a jumping off point into fleshing out various parts of Jules’ mind.

Unlike Rue’s episode, the episode often cuts away from the therapy session in order to create the full experience of Jules’ mind through flashbacks, fantasies, nightmares, and scenes we had previously only seen from Rue’s point of view. As a montage of Rue and Jules’ scenes from the first season plays, Jules confesses in a voice over, “There were so many times I wanted to kiss her. But I didn’t. How could it be possible that Rue loved me as much as I loved her?” Just like that, viewers are offered an entirely new perspective on the events of a series that they thought they knew. If viewers did not already want to take Rue and Jules and put them in a room together to actually communicate, they do now. Levinson has truly pulled back the curtain and warned viewers not to follow Rue quite so blindly next season.

Levinson uses the episode not only to show us a different dimension to the first season, but also to portray our own human complexities onscreen. In a way, giving viewers such an intimate view of Jules’ daydreams, fears, and ideas about the world prompts empathy towards Jules and our own daydreams, fears, and ideas. We so often don’t take time to sit patiently with our mental health, but both of these episodes push against this idea, inviting us to sit with ourselves—the good, the bad, and the maybe not as ugly as we thought. Between being able to bear witness to Jules’ therapy session, worst fears, and hidden past, the viewer is prompted to fully see and empathize with Jules’ perspective.

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In this context, viewers can follow and empathize with Jules

the ocean as a force larger than her own life, but for her, the

as she discusses her intensely personal experience of be-

poetry is in her identity. Perhaps Rue will also discover the

ing trans. Jules starts her session discussing her desire to

real poetry in her life in season two. The subtle symbolic link

go off her hormones and her views on gender and puberty,

between these episodes and characters suggests that there

leading her to emphatically explain, “At least for me, being

is certainly more for them to learn from each other going

trans is spiritual. You know, it’s not religious. It’s not, like, for

forward. Additionally, these episodes show audiences the

some congregation. It’s for me. It’s mine. It belongs to me.

immense depth of these characters while also encouraging

And I don’t ever want to stand still. Like, I want to be alive. I

viewers that the poetry is available and unique to all of us.

mean, that’s what this has always been about, is, like… staying alive.” Jules is glowing more during this moment than any

While TV is usually a dazzling distraction and escape—an es-

other moment in the episode. Jules describes her trans iden-

pecially tempting combination during the trauma of the pan-

tity—inspired by trans actor Hunter Schafer’s experience—as

demic—Euphoria’s special episodes show us that audiences

unique and personal to her, making for a kind of visibility that

are also seeking something more from TV. These episodes

is deeper and more unique than simply having a trans char-

represent a new kind of TV that prompts introspection and

acter present in the series. The audience discovers several

the feeling of being understood. It seems that everyone’s job

new dimensions to Jules’ character, revealing her identity as

during these hour-long stretches of time is to reflect—both

complex and multidimensional. This visibility feels more au-

characters and audience. Levinson gives audiences a tre-

thentic and intentional than most on-screen representation.

mendous amount to work with in terms of these characters

Prior to her description of what being trans means to her,

and their experiences—Rue and Ali’s uniquely complex Black

Jules talks about her love and respect for the ocean as we

experiences, Jules’ trans experience, a complex relationship,

see shots of her swimming and lying on the shore at sunset

and the ripple effects of drug addiction and mental health.

as water rushes over her body. She explains, “The ocean’s

Everyone needs to feel understood, even by the characters

strong as f*ck and feminine as f*ck. And like, both are what

on their screen. Not only do these episodes draw our atten-

makes the ocean the ocean.” It is clear that Jules loves the

tion more purposefully towards these characters and their

ocean for the broader ideas of gender and strength that it

perspectives, but they also encourage us to check in with

represents. Jules even says, “Sometimes I pray to the ocean.”

ourselves. We, like Rue and Jules, are encouraged to find the

It all feels incredibly poetic because it’s so deeply authentic

“poetry” in life that will give us hope for the future.

to Jules. The ocean serves as a kind of symbolic precursor for her description of being trans that comes directly afterwards, giving the viewer a perfect example of what a spiritual experience can look like for someone. The poetry of this moment is no accident on Levinson’s part. Jules’ reference to the ocean harkens viewers back to the end of Rue’s special episode during which Ali argues that part of Rue’s struggle with sobriety lies in her lack of belief in something larger than herself. Rue scoffs at this, citing the ocean as something she believes is more powerful than her. Ali specifies that one needs to believe in the “poetry” of life in order to have hope— something that pulls her into the future. Like Rue, Jules cites CU L T UR E

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Words by: Alexand ra Ch a

a lla B

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Linki n

identity t o a

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By imagining a circle as a closed loop, it can become a loop that we can trace throughout life. We can move along the circle of life, reaching new points, but always staying within that one

Who we are and how we define ourselves is any-

thing but stagnant. It is human to be constantly changing, evolving from one stage to the next as we progress through the continuum of selfhood. Identity is composed of an infinite number of things with each part interacting to create a whole person. As there are so many different factors that are involved in shaping who we are, recognition of these changes highlights potential for change and progress in our understanding. One way of imagining how these changes influence our movement through life is in a circle. Our entire identity and sense of self is comparable to a circle. We can rely on the core outline of who we are, but we may not always be the same person for the entirety of our lives.

circle that is ourselves. Being alive and embracing life means changing. It is impossible to be the same in every moment, interaction, or era. People continue to change and progress, taking moments and knowledge from the past to build and shape the future. The only expectation we should have in life is its inevitability. Identity and sense of self do not easily present themselves in one moment as something we can instantly and seamlessly embody. Time and effort is required to discover the things that build a person into themself. Finding the things that inspire movement in life progress us to the next point of life. It is hard to grow if boundaries are not pushed. Challenging who we are and thinking about our identity helps to propel the natural changes we feel, pushing us along the circle of our lives and existence.

In this way, we have to nurture ourselves as we grow in order to allow ourselves to truly bloom and flourish.

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Just like identity, imagine the social construction of gender as a circle. A circle is infinite, which means that our understanding of gender can be just that. Binaries and categories do not have to exist in a circle, rather there can be multiple points along that line a person can occupy. A circle, furthermore, encourages constant movement. Through this flow, we find ourselves within the continuum of gender. All people can exist within this circle through the different ways we each express gender. By leaving room to shift and grow within the context of gender, there is potential to express a more complex and complete image of oneself reflective of what we feel.

Gender norms are simply established norms, not ultimate truths, which means rigidity regarding the boundaries of gender can be an illusion. Expanding our perception of gender beyond accept-

n Ide

are and the potential of who we can be. Gender can be some-

beyond g en

r de

ed societal images is a way to think more deeply about who we

ty ti

thing we construct for ourselves rather than something society

Identity expands beyond simply gender, reaching every aspect

constructs for us. Thinking about the relationship between our-

of our lives, ultimately showing how fluid our human experience

selves and society promotes a deeper understanding of our true

is. Our physical surroundings, beliefs, race and ethnicity, fam-

nature and opens up a greater potential for expression. Gender

ily life, friends, interests and much more all contribute to who

can be something each person creates and defines individually

we are and how we understand ourselves. Gender is one par-

throughout life.

ticularly significant aspect of identity as it is integral in shaping how we interact with ourselves, others and the world around us.

Identity, however, includes a wide variety of different criteria and can range from something as big as a religious conviction to something as small as a favorite song, including everything in between.

Throughout life, we should avoid resisting movement and changes. By embracing and exploring their deeper meaning, we can change and grow more easily, fully embracing fluidity in every aspect of our lives. Although it can be tempting to resist, fighting against the tide of life will only make us feel like we’re drowning. Follow the natural flow, rising and falling with the waves we experience, embracing the fluidity of life and the fluidity of being human.

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Words by: Emma Diede Collage by: Ella Baseman

T HE TI M E L INE S S OF

TIMELESS LITERATUR E 28

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“What’s past is prologue,” wrote William Shake-

A novel’s ability to resonate decades after its publication is

speare in The Tempest, over 400 years ago in 1610. Pro-

not confined to any one genre or time of publication. Rath-

logues set the groundwork for the story, establishing a prec-

er, romances, mysteries, and tragedies written across the

edent for what is to come next, often remaining prevalent

centuries can all have an impact upon modern readers, re-

throughout a narrative. The past works in the present in

gardless of when exactly they were penned. The Picture of

the same way. The themes of generations before our own

Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, published in 1890, is a story

can continue for centuries, and understanding what has

which has maintained popularity hundreds of years after it

come before allows for a greater understanding of what

was written. Sure, it was set in the nineteenth century, and

comes next. This concept is beautifully illustrated through

the language and plot reflected that period, but there was

works of literature that have outlived the era in which they

some aspect to it that felt modern and understandable in

were written, remaining in the popular culture due to their

the context of this world we inhabit. One of the messag-

continuous relatability. Classic literature remains relevant,

es that is so relevant within this novel is the message that

demonstrating that certain themes can transcend time.

beauty on the outside does not necessarily equate to beau-

These books can remind us of the values that remain con-

ty on the inside. We have all grown up with the adage, “Don’t

sistent throughout generations and teach us what messag-

judge a book by its cover,” and this story expanded upon

es are important enough to keep listening to in our future.

that, reminding us to remain critical of the consumption of beauty. This ideal feels even more relevant now than in the

Why are certain books still beloved after generations of

1800s, as social media has oversaturated our society and

societal change? How can the words of an eighteenth-cen-

beauty is often held as the gold standard for success. There

tury writer move readers three centuries later? There must

is nothing wrong with an appreciation of beauty, in fact,

be some underlying message, motif, or theme that feels

Oscar Wilde was a major proponent of the aestheticism

emotionally relevant to readers regardless of the current

movement, which believed that art should be beautiful for

world around them. Not every book can remain widely en-

the sake of beauty, not some higher purpose. The Picture of

joyed for decades. Hundreds of novels and stories have

Dorian Gray does not condemn beauty, but rather the hold

been lost throughout the decades for a variety of reasons.

society places upon the supremacy of youth, and the way

But, despite the odds, some stories remain discussed and

societal expectations have a negative influence upon its

beloved, even withstanding controversy. There are many

people. Wilde himself was ostracized for his ideas and im-

reasons why certain novels continue to be bestsellers over

prisoned for his sexuality. Perhaps one of the greatest mes-

the decades; perhaps it is their language, the notoriety of

sages within Wilde’s work is to appreciate beauty outside of

an author, or a commitment made by high school English

what society deems to be beautiful, without the all-consum-

teachers to continue to make it required reading. Of course,

ing obsession, an unfortunate reminder of the way Wilde

we must also remember who has been allowed to tell sto-

was treated by society. This message is of course relevant

ries. Historically, heterosexual white cis-gendered men have

today. Especially as younger generations have grown up

been in the best position to have their stories appreciated.

bombarded with superficial messages of how to look and

There are exceptions, and it is vital that a reader find these

act, there must be an opportunity to reflect upon these mes-

exceptions, to discover viewpoints beyond what has been

sages and reevaluate what our society values. It is essen-

easily accepted by mainstream society. In general, It is

tial to remain critical of the type of person society deems to

arguable that a book is able to transcend its time period due

be beautiful, and make space to appreciate beauty that lies

to the themes it explores and presents and the messages it

beyond social media’s influence.

has for its readers.

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Wilde’s novel shows that these issues of self-obsession and the worship of societally appropriate beauty have persisted for two hundred years, which implies that there may be a way to overcome these issues on a personal level, if not a societal one. Through his characters, Wilde professes the importance of letting go of beauty as a means to an end (perhaps, in today’s world, a means to garner likes on Instagram or to criticize oneself in comparison) and allow oneself to appreciate art and beauty without ignoring other aspects of life, such as respect for others’ internal value without the judgment of what is on the outside.

Relevant themes can be found in all kinds of older works of literature, not only novels. Playwrights are among some of the most powerful creators of long-lasting themes in their work. One such play is A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry, published in 1959. Hansberry, a staunch supporter of the civil rights movement could likely relate to Wilde’s persecution by the society in which he lived, of course in a very different way. She used her experiences as a Black woman in America to inform her works, clearly evident in A Raisin in the Sun. In addition to the social criticisms and the exploration of the issues of race in the mid-twentieth century, A Raisin in the Sun explores the theme of dreams, specifically through its connection to the poem “Harlem” by Langston Hughes, which asks “what happens to a dream deferred?”

The plights of the characters send the message of working towards and holding onto dreams. It also recognizes that a deferred dream can give birth to brilliance in an unexpected way, as well as numerous hardships. Is there a more timeless thought? Every human ever alive has dreamed, a common act of people across all time. Perhaps even more importantly, those people have found their dreams to be unattainable. But it is how we deal with dreams and their deferment that make a difference in our lives. Immersing ourselves in that exploration can allow us to explore the way dreams impact us.

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There are a number of these works of literature across the years, in addition to Oscar Wilde’s novel. Jane Austen, for example, has a massive catalog of works written around the turn of the nineteenth century that continue to have an impact upon their readers. Pride & Prejudice was a relatively progressive romance when first published, featuring the British Regency era version of a feminist protagonist.

Its message of romance between two partners on equal footing indeed remains engaging to today’s readers. Even nineteenth-century feminism can feel radical two hundred years later when read with an understanding of historical context. According to one literary critic, Hui-Chun Chang, in “The Impact of the Feminist Heroine: Elizabeth in Pride and Prejudice,” Austen’s main character, Elizabeth Bennet, “def[ies] traditional gender norms” and “affirms her feminist perspective by helping to shape Mr. Darcy’s moral character to match her own. Elizabeth inspires Mr. Darcy to set aside the pride he has in his high station in society in order to win her affections and take her hand in marriage.” (Chang). This reveals why Pride & Prejudice remains popular—the idea of a woman sticking to her own morals in regards to love, and being respected for it by her suitor is appealing regardless of the era. This idea prompts readers to reflect on their own relationships, especially the romantic, and evaluate if these relationships are on equal footing, or if there is a lack of respect that was already antiquated, in Austen’s view, in the 1800s. Readers are encouraged not to settle for what is expected of them, but to wait to find something or someone, in relationships or life in general, that affirms their own, valuable, perspective.

Empowered women in love, the dark side of society’s obsession with a certain type of beauty, the challenges and greatness dreams bring to our lives: these are all lasting themes within history. These works of literature and their themes demonstrate what was valued at their time of writing, and the fact that they have lasted hundreds of years demonstrates that these values remain constant in society.

By reading novels of the past, we can use the context of the present to understand our world a little better. Further, it might allow us to have an idea of how to build a better future, so long as we remain cognizant of what people inherently find relatable, relevant, and worthwhile.

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COLLAGEs BY: ALEXANDRA CHAMBERS CULTURE SECTION CREATIVE DIRECTION: JACLYN SKRELA & SARAH BARLYN

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Welcome to the Jungle: Rebecca Minkoff’s Spring ‘21 NYFW Presentation Words by: Carrie Berk Graphic by: Kathryn Schulte

Through a sea of photographers, I spy a team of four enforcing temperature checks at the door of Spring Studios. A red wristband gives each guest the green light, signifying that we can move onto the next entry stage. Circles on the ground, reminiscent of Kindergarten poly spots, remind us to stand six feet apart from fellow attendees. After several minutes of waiting for limited-space elevators, once again, we stand on social-distancing marks while being taken to our final destination. The doors open onto a terrace—we are welcomed by more cameras, blasting music, and a hand sanitizer dispenser. Amid the chaos, my friends and family sit comfortably at home, streaming the show from their cell phones. This is not just the first-ever February Fashion Week amid the pandemic: it is a striking glimpse into the future of the industry, one charged with creativity, perseverance, and greater reliance on digital media.

Most designers chose to abandon a traditional runway or presentation in place of a virtual showcase in light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Rebecca Minkoff, however, kept the spirit of Fashion Week alive both online and in person. In addition to a unique at-home viewing experience via TikTok and OnlyFans, the designer organized an upbeat celebration for an exclusive group of attendees who were invited, a few at a time, to view her latest collection during a 20-minute time slot—a stark contrast to her biannual two-hour presentation.

The event transported guests to a garden paradise, as models displayed the season’s top trends beside tropical greenery. Indeed, the line drew inspiration from the contrast between elegant florals and the “downtown edge of the concrete jungle, that of New York City.”

Minkoff’s spring collection featured seasonal staples such as pastel florals and eyelet embellishments, melded with a touch of the designer’s signature bohemian edge. Fringe, studs, animal prints, and exaggerated details established an unapologetically bold aesthetic, ideal for the woman who can’t help but make a statement in her Zoom meetings. Each ensemble also featured a matching face mask, produced in a variety of fabrics in-

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cluding denim and zebra print. The required COVID-era accessory—which has become a transformative style staple for all seasons—accompanied a slew of pieces, including a maxi dress, soft quilted jacket, shift dress, and more. The designer’s other accessories, on the other hand, were focused on fun over function.The Edie Crossbody, in particular, stands out: produced in suede, the purse incorporated 70s-esque fringe detailing. As for shoes, studded sandals (with and without heels) and booties also accentuated with fringe took center stage.

Besides the pandemic-friendly ensembles themselves, Minkoff’s recent presentation is most notable for its high-tech component: Minkoff utilized XR extended reality, in partnership with Verizon Media 5G content, to give people 360-degree access to the show via their phones. Using a technique called photogrammetry capture, the event was cast in AR, providing a unique experience that made at-home viewers feel as if they were witnessing the designs live. “Immersive content really helps to contextualize a collection and allows the consumer to get up close with the designer and the garments without stepping foot in a store,” Minkoff said in a press statement. Minkoff is also the first designer to launch behind-the-scenes coverage of Fashion Week on OnlyFans; although the platform is better known for its X-rated content, the designer brought a sophisticated edge to the app, sharing both photos and videos of her line. To advance digital viewing opportunities, Minkoff’s Spring ’21 Presentation was live-streamed on the brand’s TikTok and Instagram as well.

With an increased emphasis on technology, brands like Minkoff’s also offer an opportunity to reduce the environmental impact of Fashion Week. Consider the gas emissions required to transport attendees to and from shows in cars, or the number of paper wristbands distributed and quickly discarded once the day is complete. Streaming digitally provides a chance to reduce the carbon footprint of Fashion Week and further emphasizes the significance of sustainability awareness in the industry.

The melding of fashion and digital media amid the pandemic raises an essential question about the future of Fashion Week: is it destined to become an online-only event? Rebecca Minkoff leaned into emerging digital platforms to keep its audience engaged amid today’s COVID landscape—and they were not the only company tapping into the trend. Designers such as Valentino, Anna Sui, Christian Siriano and more offered a virtual front-row seat to their fashion shows for an exclusive guest list in February. Select brands such as Alice + Olivia even shipped outfits to influencers so they could don seasonal pieces while watching the new collection on their screens. Although at-home social media images may not be as glamorous as Getty snapshots, the sentiment remains the same: to celebrate the spirit of the company, even when technology replaces typical in-person gatherings.

Fashion Week aside, the influence of social media and technology on the industry has been simmering since the pre-pandemic world. Consider Teen Vogue’s shift to solely a digital cover or the gradual decrease in page numbers of today’s top fashion magazines. The pandemic has only further pushed fashion in the direction of digital media; with fresh explorations in online fashion presentations, the industry is certainly not slowing down anytime soon in its efforts.

Minkoff’s recent ode to the environment was anything but conventional. Despite the dramatic shift in today’s world, the designer stayed true to her signature feminine rocker vibe. The juxtaposition of elegant silhouettes and edgy accents transcended the phone screens of the athome audience, who may have attended Fashion Week for the first time from the comfort of their couches. The pandemic has transformed the fashion industry, but this change is not to be frowned upon: with innovative use of digital media amid adversity, the future of Fashion Week is bright and charged with boundless hope.

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Gender nonconformity throughout history and on TikTok Words by: Joy Zhou Graphics by: Kathryn Schulte

During the COVID-19 quarantine of last spring, the

The acceptance “femboys” receive is not always extended

short-form video social media platform TikTok exploded in

to gender non-binary people who do not purposely make vid-

popularity. E-girls and e-boys sprung out of the hype, and a

eos about their gender nonconforming clothing. Currently,

Jenny Humphrey-Esque aesthetic was born. These “e-peo-

TikTok is saturated with aesthetically pleasing videos that

ple” winged their eyeliners past their eyebrows, painted

do not aid in the world’s long-term acceptance of gender

their nails, and wore layers of jewelry. They branded them-

non-binary individuals. These videos seem to be mainly for

selves as “alternative,” and it became cool to have them on

fashion’s sake and can be harmful when they gain likes and

the “For You” page as opposed to creators who do not dress

positive comments while people who have been rejecting

according to this look. Some e-boys branched out into a

traditional gender norms since before the “trend” have been

category labeled “femboy” by wearing skirts and maid out-

ridiculed for their identities. “Femboys’’ begin to stand too

fits after girls commented on the appeal of a man who will-

close to the line between queerbaiting and genuine recog-

ingly donned traditionally femme styles and rejected the

nition of gender nonconformity when they do not speak up

status quo. However, many of these creators are using this

for people who have been scorned for being true to them-

“trend” as an opportunity to gain exposure and, unintention-

selves, regardless of societal norms. In fact, not many of

ally, undermine the history

these creators identify as gender non-binary and, although

derogatory, meaning

and,

formally

behind

namesake.

their

it is important to show that anyone can dress as they wish, the genderqueer community does not actually receive proper representation. The lack of representation for gender non-binary people is not just a problem on TikTok; although there are many genderqueer celebrities, the public remains ignorant to their identities or choose to overlook it. While one’s identity should not overshadow their accomplishments, there is very little acknowledgment of people’s gender identities unless their outward appearances call it into question. The popularity that “femboys” on TikTok have garnered does not give true representation to what it is like to be genderqueer and a person’s gender identity is brushed over since the trend is not actually celebrating gender non-binary people.

Historically, dressing differently from the expected social norm was only acceptable in the theater. “Cross-dressing”

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Prince

in acting came into existence when laws excluded women from the stage, leading men to take on female roles. It was

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one of the only instances where men could stray from tra-

his name back, but this event sparked conversations about

ditionally masculine clothing without ridicule. This practice

the press’s unwillingness to respect the pronouns of peo-

was lost after women were allowed to act in theaters.

ple who do not adhere to the gender binary. Prince’s actions brought the public’s attention to the freedom people

Prominent figures who openly defied gender norms had to

have in defying gender norms and pushed past the hyper-

consistently defend themselves. David Bowie was a main-

masculine expectations that Black men were subjected to.

stream musician who regularly wore androgynous clothing and promoted subverting the gender binary. Before his era

Androgyny was beginning to be accepted in the music in-

in the 60s, 1950s America was very strict in enforcing gen-

dustry but it was still criticized in other industries since

der roles in fashion. Men were expected to dress in business

people perceived it as a fashion choice that was driven by

suits and muted colors, such as gray or black. Television

creativity. Dennis Rodman, a basketball player who played

shows such as I Love Lucy and Leave it to Beaver portrayed

for five NBA teams from 1986 to 2000, brought attention

men as professionals whose appearances should not share

to the fact that male athletes should also be free to define

any similarities with women. Using his alter ego, Ziggy Star-

their gender identities however they saw fit. The idea that a

dust, Bowie rejected these rules. However, he found himself

professional athlete was meant to present as “hyper-mas-

having to defend his decision to grow his hair long in 1964

culine” because sports were a “male” activity was some-

and explain why he chose to wear theatrical makeup and

thing that Rodman challenged publicly. He spoke about his

flamboyant bodysuits in interviews with The Rolling Stone.

self-expression in his book, Bad As I Wanna Be, where he

He was also known for wearing dresses on-stage and posed

wrote, “I like bringing out the feminine side of Dennis Rod-

in a dress for the cover of his album, The Man Who Sold the

man.” He painted his nails pink and wore drag makeup for

World. Bowie promoted gender neutrality and opened the

special outings like book signings. He also rode around on a

public’s eyes to the possibilities in challenging the binary.

pink Harley-Davidson motorcycle. Rodman’s success in the sports industry, an institution that shapes our concept of

In the same era, Prince was also pushing gender norma-

ideal masculinity, aided his reworking of the gender binary.

tive boundaries and redefining masculinity. In his presence, Prince, was giving representation to the Black, queer

Even now, although modern American society has become

community, in the face of a White male-dominated conver-

more progressive, we have yet to become fully comfort-

sation. At the time, it was taboo for Black men to discuss

able with gender non-nonbinary individuals. Indya Moore, a

and explore their sexualities, even in their own families and

transgender and non-binary actor/model, has experienced

communities, because of the already existing social regu-

transphobia since birth and, because of that, had to leave

lations that threatened Black masculinity in the 1950s. The

their family at the age of 14.

rate at which Prince created controversy was telling of the time he was in. Prince sought out touchy subjects and used them to coax the public into discussion. He briefly changed his pronouns and name to a symbol, the Love Symbol, in 1993 to protest Warner Bros when they did not allow him to release his music as he liked and used his unreleased tracks to tie him to their contract. Prince also wanted to know if the public would respect an individual’s decisions to be referred to as anything other than “she/her’’ or “he/ him.” However, most publications simply referred to him as “The Artist Formerly Known as Prince.” In 2000, he changed F A S H ION

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Indya Moore

In a six hour talk that they hosted in 2019, they spoke

Alok Vaid-Menon, an American writer, is also vocal in spread-

about the 10 years they lived after leaving their family and

ing awareness about the gender nonconforming communi-

their experiences as a Black, transgender person in foster

ty. Their conversations not only discuss the misleading and

care. Even though they know that it is important to speak

limited nature of non-binary representation in mainstream

about their past and advocate for their community, Moore

media but also the struggle they face in finding their place

expressed that it is difficult to keep up since they are also

in the transgender community. Menon realized that non-bi-

still learning. They told Vogue in an interview, “[Sharing their

nary people are often left out of feminist, queer, and anti-rac-

past] makes people have too much access to me in a way

ist movements and, in 2016, held a meeting with non-binary

that doesn’t feel safe.” Moore pointed out that marginalized

and gender nonconforming people of color to talk about the

celebrities are often held to different standards than cisgen-

differentiating struggles of their community. They point-

der, White celebrities. They shared this statement on Twit-

ed out that non-binary individuals experience “feelings of

ter, “Marginalized artists shouldn’t have to need to be rooted

imposter syndrome” when reflecting on their experienc-

in social justice work also. Black and brown and queer and

es since it differs from those who are binary transgender.

trans folks deserve that option.” The tweet has since been

Menon writes on their blog, “The crux of the violence is not

deleted but it has stirred conversations about the part that

just misgendering, it’s gendering to begin with.” They are

more privileged celebrities play in activism. White, cisgen-

passionate about dismantling the gender binaries, starting

der public figures should work alongside marginalized in-

with clothing, and have designed brightly colored, patterned

dividuals to lessen the pressure of society’s expectations.

clothing with dresses and skirts that are gender-neutral.

This does not stop Moore from continuing their work, how-

Menon’s take on clothing is also not based on aesthetics,

ever, since they know that their experience is common in the

they see beauty in “looking like yourself,” rather than “look-

trans community and spreading awareness is, to them, part

ing good.” They worked with Indian photographers, stylists,

of their survival instinct.

and makeup artists for this collection since they wanted to “challenge the whiteness of this non-binary conversation,” they told PAPER magazine, “— it’s been around [in India] for thousands of years.”

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F L A S H MAGAZIN E Sam Smith, British singer, came out as non-binary on Ins-

There is no telling if the boys praised for their defiance of

tagram and wrote, “After a lifetime of being at war with my

the binary will continue to incorporate gender non-conform-

gender I’ve decided to embrace myself for who I am, inside

ing styles into their outfits after the hype dies down. These

and out.” They revealed that they were scared to come out

“femboys’’ may not even know the impact their actions can

but, despite their fears, feel free. Smith’s struggles with their

have when they post their videos since they may not identify

identity began when they were young, never feeling com-

with, or acknowledge, the community of people who do not

fortable in their own body. Their negative body image came

pay attention to fashion and do not dress to oppose gen-

from insecurities about how their body put on weight, they

der norms but, in fact, are gender non-binary. However, their

state in an interview with Jameela Jamil, “I put on weight in

videos can be productive if they attribute role models who

places women put on weight.” After embracing their non-bi-

have inspired their expression of identity or do collabora-

nary identity, Smith has improved their body confidence.

tions with gender non-binary creators on TikTok, who have

At the moment, they are not fully ready to speak on what

not gained the large followings these fashion creators have

it means to be non-binary but hopes that their coming out

amassed. This can expand the message of acceptance on

will give the community visibility. Smith has asked their

the platform. Creators who post these videos and actually

fans to try to respect their pronouns-- they expected to re-

identify as non-binary can also make their gender identity

ceive backlash-- and is open to questions people may have

clear, if they are comfortable with doing so. “Femboys’’ are

and cited leaders of the non-binary/trans community who

no longer in a position to ignore social issues that direct-

helped them understand gender identity.

ly relate to their content and have the responsibility to use their popularity in positive ways.

Giving credit and visibility to activists and charities that support the non-binary community is the first step TikTokers can take to steer away from the fetishization and dilution of gender non-binary people. TikTokers seem to be making their followers more comfortable with abolishing gender norms, but these creators should be mindful of how they use their platform. “Femboys,” at this moment, are reducing the gender identities of an entire community down to clothes, which is counterintuitive since the point of dressing against gender norms is to separate gender and clothing. The message that clothing does not determine one’s gender identity is clear, but how can TikTokers further aid in encouraging the public’s acceptance of gender identity out-

Alok Vaid-Menon

side the realm of clothing? If the trend is going to be more than a passing fad, creators need to educate themselves and their followers.

Note: The topic of gender nonconformity in mainstream media can be approached from many different angles and there are so many figures that I can write about. That being said, I cannot fit everything I would like to say into one article without going off on multiple tangents.

This is just one of my attempts to offer some background, all stemming from a trend that I

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Pages 40,41,46,67 Photos/CONCEPT by: ruby lee model : Kayla kojima STYLIST : RUBY LEE & KAYLA KOJIMA fashion SECTION CREATIVE DIRECTION: SHAYLAH LLOYD & ALYSSA MORTERUD pages 48,49 Photos/CONCEPT by: Audrey tirrell model : Audrey tirrell STYLIST : Audrey tirrell CLOTHING FROM : Aurora Audrey fashion SECTION CREATIVE DIRECTION: SHAYLAH LLOYD & ALYSSA MORTERUD

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What is Real Beauty Anymore?

Words by: Celia Patterson Visuals from: Check Credits

In April of last year, the followers of an Instagram influencer known as Lil Miquela were in for quite a shock when Miquela revealed that she was not, in fact, a real person, but a robot.

Or rather, a product of Brud, a Los Angeles based “transmedia” start-up. Lil Miquela is just one of a new cohort of artificial intelligence influencers who hold court over impressive followings on social media platforms. These influencers are essentially indistinguishable from “real” influencers as they post, promote, and communicate with their followers in an identical fashion. But what does it mean if the business of influencing has been infiltrated by robots?

Lil Miquela is not alone in her status as an artificial intelligence influencer, as she is often accompanied in her photos by her fellow Brud creations, Bermuda and Rawko. They all maintain perfectly curated feeds that showcase their fun lifestyle, impeccable fashion sense, and unnaturally good looks. This combination seems to be a recipe for success, as each of their accounts boast impressive followings.

Shudu, promoted as “The World’s First Digital Supermodel,” is another iteration of this successful formula. Shudu, created by CameronJames Wilson, was inspired by a Princess of South Africa Barbie doll. Her ethereal beauty has earned her partnerships with many high fashion brands like Christian Louboutin and Ferragamo and features in Vogue and V Magazine.

off of her partnerships and collaborations.

As one Twitter user wrote of Wilson, “A white photographer figured out a way to profit off black women without ever having to pay one.” Wilson is also CEO of The Diigitals, “The World’s First All Digital Modelling Agency.” Out of the seven “models” the agency represents (one of whom is an alien), four appear to be people of color. None of them, in fact, appear to be white men. Through his fabrication of these models, Wilson is able to manipulate exactly how to present the bodies and shape the images of people whose identities are very different from his own.

In an interview with Lauren Michele Jackson for The New Yorker, Wilson told her that he “considers Shudu a work of art.” In some ways the images that feature these models do feel like exhibits, as Wilson curates their appearance, attire, and pose as he sees fit. Despite their constructed nature, some of these models are actually designed after real-life people. In these cases, Wilson has (with the consent of the models) appropriated the appearances of real people of color in their entirety.

In Jonathan Square’s article for Fashionista, Minh-Ha T. Pham, associate professor at Pratt Institute, calls Shudu “a white fantasy of disembodiment.” Wilson has repeatedly expressed his love for the Black models that inspired Shudu, calling her a tribute to their beauty, sidestepping the fetishistic aspect of his ownership and appropriation of Black beauty in the form of Shudu.

However successful Shudu is, some criticism has been leveled against her, or rather, against her creator. Wilson is a white man who created and controls the image of a Black woman, profiting

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He also fails to acknowledge the way in which his privileged position as a white man problematizes the profits he gains from showcasing this beauty as his own property. As Pham writes on Twitter, “Blackfacing allows whites to use symbols of Blackness without having to deal with actual Black people. Blackfacing isn’t an entry, it’s a barrier.”

The lack of representation of non-white models has long been an issue in an industry that has consistently failed to become inclusive. Many Black models in the fashion industry have heard the same sentence when turned away from a job: “We already have one Black model.” In an exploration of the skin colors of cover models for Vogue from 2000-2018, The Pudding found that the five cover models with the lightest skin were five different people, while the five cover models with the darkest skin were in fact only three different people, as one was featured on three different covers. When Liu Wen became the first Asian model to walk the runway for Victoria’s Secret in 2009, news outlets celebrated this achievement, rather than questioned why it had taken so long. This tokenism is still prominent in the fashion and beauty industries today, as companies seek “to achieve the bare minimum of diversity” by “us[ing] just one or two members of an underrepresented group.”

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Tokenism dominates the fashion and beauty industries, restricting “representation” to a chosen few models. One of the few dark-skinned Black models who have found success in these industries is Duckie Thot, who has also been named by Wilson as an influence of Shudu.

Ironically, while Thot has spoken about her struggles finding work as a Black model, Shudu, modelled in part after her, has encountered none of these obstacles due to her proximity to Wilson’s whiteness. This is why the use of a digital model like Shudu is so troubling. Instead of hiring one of the few models of color in the fashion industry, companies like Balmain prefer to hire the services of a white man to create a Black model.

Wilson thus appropriates Black identity with his models and takes away opportunities for real dark-skinned Black models already struggling for visibility in an industry that seeks to employ them as tokens.

Shudu and two other “models” represented by the Diigitals were featured in Balmain’s Pre-Fall 2018 campaign. In this campaign, the three models stand next to each other draped in designer clothing, carefully posed with poreless skin. While the images are beautiful, they also feel distinctly unnatural. As model and actress Jessica Markowski says in a statement to Insider, “I think computer generated models are too perfect and unrealistic, which will as a result go against the body positivity movement and what viewers want in fashion.” Digital models are easily able to maintain the thin frame that many human models find difficult to attain, sometimes even resorting to dangerous methods as they pursue the unrealistic sample size desired by designers. The constructed beauty of models like Shudu create even more unrealistic body standards for women who already are faced with impossibly perfect fashion models and Facetuned influencers.

“If digital models can’t get real, then get real models.”

These unrealistic standards extend also to facial beauty. Companies like SK-II and Manny MUA’s Lunar Beauty have experimented with digital models in promoting their products. The use of these models has been controversial, as the products they are marketing are for human skin. The digital models used in Lunar Beauty’s campaign are not actually wearing makeup, but instead have the makeup rendered digitally to approximate how it appears on human skin.

These models are unable to accurately represent how the company’s products will perform, as they are not a part of the human demographic that will buy from Lunar Beauty. Like Lunar Beauty, SK-II sought to market their products using a digital model. The company took it a step further, however, creating a digital spokesperson named Yumi to promote their skincare products. As Yumi advertises products meant to minimize pores and clear skin, she shows off her poreless, flawless skin that she attained not with SK-II’s products, but through her digital nature. In this way, companies like SK-II, Lunar Beauty, and Balmain seek to connect their products with the inhuman beauty of digital models, encouraging consumers to seek out and attempt to recreate appearances that were digitally created and manipulated.

Artificial intelligence influencers like Shudu and Lil Miquela not only perpetuate the unrealistic beauty standards that target women, but also raise these standards even higher out of reach through their digitally manufactured perfection, creating an ideal that their followers will never be able to attain. Digital models are able to use their connection to this ideal to promote products like clothing, makeup, and skincare that they can never use. Lil Miquela and Shudu, while appearing as women of color, remain separate from this identity due to their artificiality. As Kemi Alemoru writes for Dazed, “If you like what women of colour represent, and how they look, then hire them...Until then, your CGI imitations only prove that you love the looks of POC, but not the reality of us.” Brud and Cameron-James Wilson profit off of the proximity of their creations to an ideal that real women have difficulty emulating while taking away opportunities from real women of color. While the idea of artificial intelligence influencers seems fun and futuristic, these digital models instead seem to encourage a return to older beauty standards and tokenism that neglect the importance of real representation and the progress of the body positivity movement. If digital models can’t get real, then get real models.

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Asian-Owned Beauty Brands to Support Words and visuals by: Elle Lee, @ellessentially_ on Instagram

For months, I’ve seen violence directed at the AAPI community continue with little attention. Historically, Asians have been expected to stay quiet, to remain unseen, and to go without notice. We are told not to cause trouble, not to step on toes. But this year is a year of heartbreak, of deep collective pain once again rising to the surface, something that cannot and should not be overlooked.

There is so much I wish I could express. The gut-punch of sorrow by the loss of eight lives in Atlanta. The sore wound of knowing that that is just one of many incidents targeting the Asian community. Anger, outrage, bitterness—towards publications spending more focus on a murderer’s “bad day” and “addiction” than on honoring the lives lost, towards the systemic lack of attention and otherness that the Asian community endures daily,

Tower 28 Beauty

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This is a new brand I’m particularly excited about, founded and run by Gen-Z Asian American women. Designed with city living in mind, their products address the toll urban environments can take on skin and they take brand missions to a new level. Every product is named after a city and proceeds from each sale go towards a local NGO directly supporting the communities of their namesake. They also have the cutest packaging ever.

I love their San Francisco Calming Clouds: delightful little cloud-shaped toning pads that use niacinamide, calendula flower extract, and centella asiatica to soothe skin in an instant. They’re the perfect size to use under the eyes before wiping down the face for a quick refresh. Their Balance Your Seoul cream is a beautiful daily moisturizer with a light but hydrating formula in a convenient pump bottle. All of Cityface’s products are cruelty, essential oil, fragrance, and animal-derived ingredients free for all sensitive skin and animal conscious shoppers!

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towards every coward that targets our elderly, our women, our brothers and sisters just going about their lives. The myriad of feelings I have about how often Asians are invalidated or undermined, told we have it easy, then treated as less than human.

It’s disgusting and sickening and infuriating. But if I know one thing, it is that we are resilient. We lean on one another, we are in this together. We are not weak. We are not quiet. We are not invisible.

Show up for the Asian community, speak out about what’s happening, check in on your Asian friends and loved ones. Support Asian creators and Asian-owned businesses like these Asian-owned beauty brands:

I seriously love this brand. Even more, my skin loves the SOS Spray as a quick refresher throughout the day and especially after wearing a face mask outside. It is made for people with sensitive skin, so it’s a product I can count on to not cause breakouts. Their lip glosses are beautiful, and I just tried the milky formula in Coconut, which is gorgeous. It smells slightly of coconuts and is currently my go-to for glossy hydrated lips! Their cheek products are what really get me. The blushes have fantastic buildable pigment and melt into the skin. They wear well throughout the day and in general are super comfortable (I’ve used shades Golden Hour and Power Hour, both of which I recommend). Their Superdew Balm is beautiful, providing a clear glow to the cheeks that really creates the glass skin look. I usually only use a touch on the high points of the cheek, but it’s fantastic for giving the skin the same glow a dewy creamy product might provide, even if you use powders. They also finally expanded their bronzer range to five shades, and while I haven’t tried their bronzers yet, their cheek range hasn’t disappointed me yet!

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This small minimalist brand features fruit-inspired makeup meant to be worn by all skin tones. They pay special attention to making products that are both good for your skin and good for the environment, and even have a refill program where you can refill your empty capsule for an extra 20% off!

Their brand is so simple and beautiful, making it one of my favorite recent finds. Despite their labels, all of their products function as multisticks, as you can use them wherever you want on the face. Jalebi and Chai are both gorgeous lip products while also being great for monochrome cheek and eye looks too. Their cream formula is strong enough for wear on the lips but melts well to be used on the cheeks too. Rose Dew is a highlighter with a pink tint that layers stunningly over blush or adds a bit of life to my eyes.

These products have amazing pigment, real lasting power, and blend beautifully for a sheer, fruit-stained lip look.

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Byroe is an NYC-based brand in the luxury skincare market, delivering gorgeous products and truly decadent formulas. They use salad-inspired ingredients to formulate their products (rice, tomato, and tofu!) , yet rise far above the typically gimmicky market of food inspired beauty. In their case, their formulas are well worth the hype. Their Rice Cleansing Sorbet is my favorite cleansing balm ever; it completely melts makeup and washes away without a trace. The Salmon Cream is also a winner in my book. It smells lovely, soaks in, hydrates skin, and has peptides, niacinamide, and a beautiful formula to make skin happy. Last but definitely not least, there is the Bitter Green Essence Toner. This product is so pretty, very hydrating and comfortable on the skin, smells pleasant but not strong, and contains hyaluronic acid, centella asiatica extract, and more vegetable extracts. Additionally, I respect that Byroe was active in speaking out during the BLM protests last summer and actively donated, promoted resources, and addressed their need for greater diversity by creating more long-term partnerships with BIPOC creators.

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Mango People

I think most of us have heard of the super cute brand Glow Recipe. I am such a big fan of both their Lip Pop Lip Balm and Glow Niacinamide Dew Drops. The Dew Drops received a bit of hype on their release, but I’m here months later to say I still love them. I use it more like a skincare-primer layer before makeup; it might be the delicious watermelon scent clouding my brain, but it’s delightful. There are other products that bring the “intense glow that lasts without being super shimmery,” but at the cost of a much thicker texture (like Glossier’s Futuredew). Instead, Dew Drops has a lovely serum texture that soaks in well and feels great on the skin, and honestly a comfortable formula is more important to me. For a light boost of hydration that feels and smells great, leaves my skin soft and subtly glowy, and works beautifully under makeup, this is my go-to. I can say of all my options, I definitely reach for this one most.

A few more honorable mentions:

Tea line is so good (special shoutout to the sleeping mask and serum).

Banila Co.: Their Clean It Zero cleansing balms are wonderful, and the Clean Serum and Milky Essence from the Dear Hydration line are both great.

Cosrx: We already know their pimple patches are incredible (you have to try the AC Collection line).

Innisfree: Overall iconic. Their lip sleeping masks are superb and the Green

I’m From: The Fig Scrub Mask smells divine and feels so good, as does the

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Cut and Paste:

The Permanence of Facial Feature Trends Words by: Emma Federer

Beauty trends move at the speed of light. While there doesn’t seem to be any method to the madness, influencer culture makes it clear what is and is not trending at the moment. When Kylie bleached the two front strands of her hair, every micro-influencer looked like Cruella de Vil, but as soon as Miley’s mullet came out, everyone ditched the bleach for a curling iron. Trying to keep up with every beauty trend will make your head spin, but while fads are temporary, they can have permanent impacts. Many of these fads are easily emulated through a new haircut or makeup technique, but some target other features that are not so easily manipulated. Even our facial structure can be subject to what’s in vogue. It’s nearly impossible to keep track of how fast these trends move, so will our facial features pay the price as we try to keep up?

When you get tired of your hair, you might get it styled at a salon, or try your luck at home. When you get tired of your face, there is a 66 billion dollar cosmetic surgery industry with thousands of surgeons that you can visit to switch

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up your bone structure. The price of being on trend is the permanence of any surgical change.

While this article will critique the cosmetic surgery industry, these surgeries can also be empowering for those who elect to have them. The industry is built on the exploitation of insecurities, but individuals are not wrong for seeking to overcome those insecurities. The fault lies with the standards and societal pressures that make people feel surgery is necessary.

From birth, many BIPOC women are made to feel insecure about features associated with their racial identity. While trends come and go with the seasons, racism is heavily ingrained in American beauty standards. The legacy of colonialism defines ideals of “beauty” by eurocentric models. As Western nations remain centers of global power, money, and privilege, European and American faces are synonymous with this power and therefore come to establish the standard of beauty. As a result, many common facial surgeries aim to permanently alter faces to appear more “Western.”

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Looking at the foxeye trend on TikTok, for which white women use makeup and posing to create lifted, almond eye shapes that are inherently Asian, one can see that a double standard exists.

Asians are ridiculed for their eyes while white women are praised for appropriating them.

While the fox-eye trend circulated on TikTok, Asian American hate crimes caused by anti-Asian rhetoric in COVID-19 misinformation skyrocketed, with little to no news coverage.

Asian features are commodified while innocent elders are attacked for the “Chinese virus,” as though the two are unrelated phenomena. However, it’s hard to say what came first: the omnipresence of eurocentric beauty standards or fetishization of ethnic facial features.

F L A S H MAGAZIN E This fetishization of facial features has roots in the concepts of Orientalism and exoticism, which refer to the fetishization of foreign cultures by Western countries. In his book Orientalism, Edward Said coined the modern idea of Orientalism “as a Western style for dominating, restructuring, and having authority over the Orient.” This method of domination not only applies to Asian cultures, but also to any foreign culture that contrasts with American and European norms. This exoticism, in a similar manner as Orientalism, “defines the means by which this ‘other’—meaning non-US and/or nonwhite—is made enchanting and palatable for consumption.” In order for non-Western beauty to be easily digested, or palatable, it needs to be put under this “exotic” label. This effort to “other” and mark as different non-Western cultures is ingrained in American culture and has a root in everything from our governing systems to the current beauty trends.. American beauty standards have the power to determine what is deemed “attractive” about BIPOC faces, what they want to appropriate for themselves and what they want to erase.

“It is a disturbing game of Mr. Potato Head, where BIPOC features are tried on and discarded as trends change”

The roots of the first double-eyelid surgery can be traced back to Orientalism. While white people desperately try to maintain a practice of inconspicuous Orientalism, Asian countries continue to maintain American and European ideals of beauty as the impossible, racist standard. Asian fetishization in America came to a head during WW2 from soldiers pining after Asian women in their occupied home countries during World War II. While American men desired Asian women for their “exotic nature,” there was a pressure to be a specific type of Asian woman—one with white skin and Western features. There is a direct link between the start of this “yellow fever” and the start of the double eyelid surgery industry. East Asian blepharoplasty, or the double eyelid surgery, was invented in Japan during the Korean War by Dr. Ralph Millard. He was an American military plastic surgeon that developed the procedures to give Asian women more “American benevolent faces.” In 2017, 1.3 million people worldwide underwent double eyelid surgery, according to the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Of these procedures, 187,000 were done in Japan alone. Colonization has made Eurocentric beauty synonymous with power within Asia.

Asian women are forced to perform whiteness while white women are allowed to accessorize with Asian features. According to the National Institutes of Health, double eyelid surgery is the most popular type of plastic surgery in Asia. On the flip side, the best surgeons that turn double-lid eyes into monolid eyes for the “aesthetic” are all located in rich, white Los Angeles neighborhoods. White people can artificially adopt the features of BIPOC and be praised as trendsetters because of the privilege that allows them to evade racism levied at BIPOC for possessing the same features. Women of color are forced to reject themselves and their natural beauty in order to create an “acceptable” Western appearance.

Only BIPOC features repackaged onto white faces are seen as beautiful.

While the focus of this article is on the appropriation of Asian features and the concept of Orientalism, it is important to note that this practice extends to other BIPOC as well. Black women are also victims of this appropriation, as not only have their style, hair, and nails long been worn by white women, but now their features as well.

Of course, Black women are ridiculed for having plump lips, but when those same lips are seen on a Kardashian? You get a “self-made billionaire’s” lip kit line. The Kardashians are a perfect example of the white privilege that allows white people to profit from using Black culture to their advantage. The whiteness of the family allows them to commodify, steal, and appropriate aspects of other races for their benefit. Ren Ellis Neyra outlines this idea perfectly in her essay “The Kardashians’ Multiracial White Supremacy,” describing the family as the “monstrous hydra of blackface,” emphasizing the anti-Black violence behind their blatant “play” with race through makeup, adornments, and facial surgeries. This “play,” while seemingly harmless in its nature, enacts violence against Asian, Black, Brown, and Indigenous women by reinforcing the idea that their features are only beautiful when viewed on white women.

White celebrities take advantage of their white privilege to appropriate what they please. It is a disturbing game of Mr. Potato Head, where BIPOC features are tried on and discarded as trends change. White women are idolized as trendsetters for this socially acceptable behavior. Some get canceled for going too far, but there is a line most can walk because they understand the power of white privilege even while craving commodified “exotic” attributes. As a result, they cherry-pick BIPOC features, taking them as their own and reducing the visibility of real BIPOC women. The best way to fight against these trends is to be confident and secure in your own beauty as a BIPOC or to uplift and highlight the beauty of BIPOC women in your life. Fight against the societal pressures that try to tell you what not to love about yourself. Take a critical look at the root of current beauty trends to be aware if they are derived from the appropriation of BIPOC features. Admire your own face in the mirror and honor the beauty of generational facial features that have been passed down to you. The uniqueness of your face doesn’t deserve to be erased in the name of a passing trend. Looking inward, we can unlearn the racist beauty standards that we’ve been taught and come to both love our own beauty as BIPOC and respect the beauty of the BIPOC around us.

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Photos/CONCEPT by: Audrey tirrell model : Audrey tirrell STYLIST : Audrey tirrell CLOTHING FROM : Aurora Audrey This photo by : elle lee Beauty SECTION CREATIVE DIRECTION : celia patterson

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OLD IS THE NEW, AGAIN

Words by: Bella Sabino Graphics by: Ruby Lee

All over our social media platforms, we can see

people wearing clothes that can be categorized within the “soft-girl,” “e-girl,” or “goth,” subcultures, and although these styles are mainstream and popular, there are aspects of each trend that we have seen before from older trends.

Whether it be colored hair for the e-girl dating back to the punk movement in 1970s, if these trends are new, why are certain aspects of them...old?

There is a clear answer: fashion is on a 20-year cycle! In an interview with INSIDER, New York-based stylist Samantha Brown states, “Typically, trends are on a 20-year cycle before their first re-appearance, which means that late ‘90s and early 2000s fashion moments will continue to pop up.”

This phenomenon that Brown discusses gives reason as to why in 2021, trends that were popular in the late 90s and early 2000s are resurfacing. However, the concept of the 20-year fashion cycle is not a newly formed theory. Origins

For instance, Chris Stenta, a contemporary journalist and

of this theory came from James Laver, a fashion theorist

member of the Fashion Industry Broadcast writes, “The cur-

throughout the 1930s into the ‘50s and creator of Laver’s

rent culture is evolving and growing faster than ever, but the

Law. From Laver’s observations of fashion trends mak-

20-year cycle seems to be sustaining some truth. The things

ing reappearances, he created Laver’s Law, which is the concept that there is a specific pattern of revivals based on previous trending periods. While the theory was created in the 1950s, it stays true to fashion today.

we loved in the ‘70s came back in the ‘90s and re-imagined their way into current fashion, with its own modern twist.

How exciting!” Through Brown, Laver, and Stenta’s observations, it is clear that fashion tends to remain on a 20-year cycle, in which they are continuously transforming, reshaping, and assimilating within current fashion contexts.

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Scrunchies

This year has seen an influx of trends

resurfacing that were popular around the turn of the millennium. One trend making a return in fashion is the scrunchie. The scrunchie, invented in 1963 by a man named Philips E. Meyers, is a soft, fluffy hair tie. The scrunchie gained popularity in the late 1990s and early 2000s when a multitude of celebrities began styling their hair with a statement scrunchie as opposed to the generic hair tie. With this, the popularity of the scrunchie exploded because not only were people influenced by celebrities, but the tie’s soft and fluffy fabric was less abrasive and caused less hair breakage, making it a fan favorite. Throughout the time it trended, the scrunchie made many notable appearances, including in Stephanie Tanner’s hair on the show Full House, singer Britney Spears’ red carpet ponytails, and in the hair of Hilary Duff in the Lizzie McGuire series and movie.

Although the scrunchie’s popularity faded in the mid-2000s, it made a massive comeback in late 2019 with the emergence of TikTok’s “VSCO Girl” trend. While scrunchies were once famously known to be electric colors and worn with patterned shirts and belts, the VSCO Girl trend reimagined the scrunchie.

Now, scrunchies are often pastel colors, worn with knee-length baggy shirts and Birkenstocks. One reason for the scrunchie’s reemergence can be traced back to nostalgia. Hallie Spradlin, an accessories director at the trend-forecasting agency Fashion Snoops claims, “Scrunchies seem to be the next wave of a comfort item that has an innocence and nostalgic attachment to it, especially for millennials and older Gen Z consumers.”

Gen Z, the typical age of users on TikTok, have returned back to their childhood roots of late 90s fashion. In 2021, the scrunchie holds an element of childhood nostalgia while also taking on new electric colors and patterns to work into 2021 trends, making old fashion new again.

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Although the creation of jeans can be attributed By the 1990s, rappers and mainstream celebto Levi Strauss & Company in 1873, the creation rities incorporated overalls into their everyday of overalls can be credited to Lee Jeans in

style. Overalls that were once worn by the band

1921. Unfortunately, overalls were once used as TLC at their concerts in 1992 have influenced a tool of inequality and oppression. Before the

celebrities such as Kylie Jenner to rock her own

1960s, overalls were once a primary distinc-

baggy overalls on her way to the grocery store

tion of class; enslaved people and lower class

in 2019. Additionally, overalls have made such

society wore overalls while the upper class

an impression on present society that clothing

wore suits and dresses. Fortunately, when the

companies like American Eagle have made ex-

Civil Rights Movement began, denim became

act replications of this style, even going as far as

a symbol for equality and the fight for Black

to directly name their version the “90’s Boyfriend

freedom. Wearing denim was a protest against

Denim Overall.”

white supremacy, and fighting for equal rights.

Contributing writer, Riley Smith, from Seamwork Magazine, states, “Denim was the look of the Civil Rights Movement that held profound symbolism for the Black freedom struggle...

Overalls

Denim’s subsequent introduction into the mainstream, marketed as a fresh and casual young

Iconic 1990s denim pieces have also

look, purposefully erased the meaning and the

inspired denim clothes today. Whether it be

discrimination faced by civil rights activists

baggy jeans, oversized denim jackets, or even

who wore denim overalls.” Due to its powerful

overalls, 90s denim trends have inspired the

symbolism, after the Civil Rights Movement,

shelves of many retailers. Overalls happen to

denim as a fabric made a reappearance, and

be the specific piece of denim making a come-

overalls grew popular.

back.

Fanny packs

Fanny packs have also reemerged into

society as a new, yet old trend. It is said that the current style of the fanny pack was created in 1962 by a woman named Melba Stone, who was inspired by a kangaroo’s pouch. The current style of the fan-

This picture is imprinted in the minds of many, even inspiring Halloween costumes. The fanny pack was also seen worn by the Olsen twins and members of the band Destiny’s Child. In comparison with its reemergence in 2020, Johnson’s turtleneck and fanny pack look

ny pack was incredibly successful throughout the

can be exchanged for Kendall Jenner’s Gucci

hands-free capability, allowing skiers to keep their

Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Versace, and Fendi have

1900s both in America and the United Kingdom. The romper and Louis Vuitton fanny pack look. fanny pack was part of a skier’s wardrobe due to its Many high-end luxury fashion brands such as belongings on them while they hit the slopes. The bag’s practicality caught on with the general public, becoming an everyday accessory in the 1980s and ‘90s.

When remembering the notable ways celebrities styled the fanny pack during the 1990s, the viral photo of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson clutching a brown fanny pack in a black turtleneck, silver chain, and medium-wash jeans comes to mind.

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incorporated fanny packs into their seasonal purse releases. While the 1990s fanny pack has been reinvented to look more fashionable, the bag’s origins still hold much clout as it is a staple piece in a current closet.

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Doc Martens

Lastly, created by Dr. Klaus Maertens in 1947 to

meet his need for a shoe with a unique air-cushioned sole, Doc Martens are a mainstay on both the runway and the feet of the public. Doc Martens, also known as “Docs,” have been an incredibly transformative trend in fashion. While they were originally created for the battlefield, the heavy sole and high platforms led Doc Martens to become a dominant piece in the wardrobe of those who fit into the 1970s punk scene and the rock, goth, and emo subcultures in the 1990s. By the late 1990s, many alternative-pop singers like Avril Lavigne were wearing Doc Martens daily. Because Docs integrated themselves into so many different subcultures, styles, and trends, they’ve really never faded out of style, which is unusual for most other pieces. Even in 2020, alternative-pop singers such as Machine Gun Kelly, Yungblud, and Halsey still wear Doc Martens, rocking them on red carpets, concerts, and on their daily errands. Although Docs never completely transitioned out of fashion, their ubiquity has decreased at times.

It was not until TikTok’s e-girl trend that the attention to Docs skyrocketed once again. E-girl, standing for an “emotional” and “electronic” girl on the Internet, is a trend rooted in a mix of goth, rock, and emo from the 1990s. Because Docs are originally part of those subcultures, when the e-girl trend took off, so did the shoes’ popularity.

Overalls, scrunchies, fanny packs, and Doc Martens are just four pieces that we have seen go through fashion’s 20-year cycle. In 2021, we are seeing many of these late 1990s and early 2000s trends transform into present styles, whether it be through the influence of TikTok creators, or trends declared by Vogue. As we continue to watch this phenomenon, it is exciting to question which current trends might cycle back in the next 20 years.

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Comfort’s Comeback Amid a Pandemic Ridden World Words by: Carolyn Branigan Graphics by Kathryn Schulte

In the past, fashion trends used to be centered around expensive and unethical brands. People were willing to splurge on ill-fitting but high end garments with the expressed purpose of looking their best, because they felt that going out into the world required them to do so.

But in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the pressure to look picture perfect at all times has subsided. And as we dive further into the year 2021, it is comfort and practicality that reigns supreme.

It all began with the initial lockdowns. Once the pressure of having to go out into the world everyday and look one’s best subsided, people used this opportunity to revamp their style completely, reassigning their old garments to the back of their closets. Tight fitting and uncomfortable clothing articles have been replaced by comfortable yet stylish sweats and flat supportive footwear. Brands like Crocs and Uggs have seen a steady rise in sales as people’s only outings were to essential locations like the grocery store and the pharmacy. The need for an attention-grabbing outfit subsided as fear of contracting the coronavirus and becoming ill was of the utmost concern.

With this new need to prioritize comfort in clothing, luxury brands saw a decrease in sales. While no one necessarily weather the pandemic free of economic hardship, it was luxury brands that saw the greatest dents in their sales.

Brands such as Neiman Marcus and Brooks Brothers have had to file for chapter 11 bankruptcy due to the extenuating circumstances of the pandemic. Other brands, such as Abercrombie have managed to stay in business, but at a cost, reporting a staggering net loss of $244.2 million.

The reasons for these business’ suffering is not solely rooted in an evolving style, however. Even though the pandemic had partially dissipated, the majority of people have still failed to bounce back to the economic state they were in prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, in New York City alone, more than 5 million people filed for unemployment as a result of circumstances relating to the pandemic between March and July of last year.

As a result of these furloughs, this has translated to a significant decrease in people’s disposable incomes.

Now, it has become easier for all people to purchase less expensive and more convenient clothing so that they can focus on diverting all their remaining funds to staying afloat during a time of economic uncertainty.

Overall, fashion today is radically different from what it was ten years ago, or even twenty years ago. Now, comfortableclothing has replaced traditionally luxury clothing in an effort to cut consumer costs and provide the greatest degree of practicality as we transition out of self quarantining. These times have forced people to shop intelligently, and as a result, luxury brands unchanging prices have caused them to suffer. Nonetheless, these trends are here to stay. Though the pandemic will subside, the need for comfort and sustainability will likely continue well into the future.

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Predicting Post-Covid Fashion

Words by: Sophia Renda Photos by: Maryam Beshara, Casey Schwarz & Sophia Renda Models: Sydeny Champagne & Sophia Renda

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2020 was a year of chaos, however, a new era of

hope, renewal, and balance is in sight. Between the COVID-19 pandemic and high stake elections, it’s safe to say many are looking forward to a fresh start in 2021. The current condition of the world serves as a continuous inspiration to artists, fashion designers included. Fashion is an art form, a response to current events and widely felt emotions. As our lives continue to change, so does fashion. With a new era of fresh life emerging, fashion will serve as a reflection through color palettes, personal expression, and trends.

Regarding color, we can expect to see both soothing pastels as well as loud, bright color palettes. Pastels indicate a yearning for the fresh beginnings and balance that many are craving post-pandemic. Colors like baby blue and soft sunflower yellow were popular during this year’s Fashion Week shows, enveloping the wearer and washing over the viewer like waves of calm. Designers who featured these colors were Bora Asku for London FW 21/22 and Aknvas for New York FW 21/22. Psychologist Kendra Cherry states, “Color can play an important role in conveying information, creating certain moods, and even influencing the decisions people make. Color preferences also exert an influence on the objects people choose to purchase, the clothes they wear, and the way they adorn their environments. People often select objects in colors that evoke certain moods or feelings”. Pastels refresh and revive, just as one would expect in a world rid of COVID-19. Likewise, bright colors indicate a reclaiming of liveliness lost at the hands of the pandemic.

Bold chartreuse and statement pinks were also frequently featured in the FW 21/22 runway shows, as these colors catch our eyes. Shows that featured bold colors were Balmain and the students of Institut Français de La Mode for Paris FW 21/22. These tones are playful and optimistic—a combination sure to energize and awaken any onlooker. As many of us have spent considerable amounts of time alone and exhausted, we need these bold colors to compliment our post-covid freshly motivated lifestyles.

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New trends tend to recycle and reclaim the fashion of past eras, and based on this, we can expect to see a revival of the “roaring ‘20s” mentality of freedom and celebration after a traumatic series of events. Americans put their lives on hold due to the Spanish flu and WW1. The people in this era were experiencing so much tragedy, that they were eager for life to feel alive again, and to dress like it too.

In the 1910s, women wore long, reserved gowns, but in the 1920s, shorter more extravagant dresses were worn–a direct reaction to a freer, livelier environment. Based on the behavioral patterns of the 1920s, we can assume that similar celebrations will follow the end of the pandemic. As individuals are itching to get out their sweats and work-fromhome outfits, we can expect to see increasingly extravagant, glamorous outfits.

Anything striking or lavish can accomplish these looks.

Corsets, sparkly materials, leather pieces and extravagant prints are trending examples of this today. Runway trends foretell much about the upcoming fashion seasons, and some recent popular pieces are puffy tops, fur coats, and asymmetric pieces—all items that signify celebration and drama. Beautiful, intricate corsets by designers such as Alexander Mcqueen and Rokh were spotted at Paris FW 21/22. Delicate puffy tops were featured in Mario Dice’s 21/22 collection, as well as Isabel Marant’s.

The ability to go out whenever and wherever post-covid, could very likely turn a new leaf over for self expression and statement-making looks.

With emphasis on self expression, a new sense of individualism in personal fashion has risen during the pandemic. Quarantine has aided many individuals in finding their own sense of style, as we have had an abundance of time to find inspiration. Personally, I know I’m ready to step out into a covid-free world, sporting exciting and innovative pieces. Now more than ever, we see individuality in endless varieties of patterns, funky pants, and abstract knits.

Brands like “House of Sunny” and “Paloma Wool” becoming increasingly popular is an indication of this. Perhaps our freedom post-covid will feel unfamiliar, but nonetheless exhilarating, and will inspire people to take steps out of their fashion comfort zones. The boundary between the “Zoom” world and real world will be broken, and with that, fashion boundaries will collapse as well.

Fashion is a raw reflection of life—both the problems we face and the victories we win as a society. Coronavirus will soon be in the past and make way for our newfound freedom, and fashion will follow suit. The cultural changes and collective healing we have undergone together show that there is hope for the future, and the natural balance of life will return as the threat of coronavirus diminishes with each vaccinated person. As we all have heard, life and art imitate each other.

Fashion is no exception. Color palettes, print and textures, and trends stay everchanging with shifts in our society, now reflecting the hope, renewal, and balance a post-covid world will bring about.

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Photos/CONCEPT by: devin lyon models (in order of occurance) : sara thoreson, sydney jones, Micaelina Carter, Micah Sell STYLIST : Sydney Jones and Sara Thoreson Beauty SECTION CREATIVE DIRECTION : Alana ALANA RAMSAMMY & SYDNEY CHAMPAGNE

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L E T T E R F ROM T H E F o r m e r C r e a t i v e D i r e c t o r

Have we already reached the end of the line?

I ponder over this question time and again wondering if that is all there is to it. The end of my fruitful relationships I have encountered, the end of my undergraduate academic career, the end of this journey I have trekked on for countless years. I wonder about all the moments I could have changed, the people I could have met sooner, the opportunities I could have pressed harder for, the outcomes I desired.

“If only I had a little more time.”

After four years of alien experiences that have opened my eyes to the realities of this diverse city we call home, I have come to realize that searching for the “what if’s” or “what could’ve beens” no longer matters.

In my early moments with FLASH, I immersed myself in the general design of each issue without any thought about what the next steps could look like for this publication. However, over time my drive to think proactively and collectively greatly expanded the field in which FLASH could go. Instead of being branded as only a “fashion magazine”, we could move forward to new territory which encompassed the thoughts and concerns of this young generation.

My ideology for FLASH as Creative Director for the past two years was to be able to accurately capture the cries and ideas of our peers in a thoughtfully choreographed group of words, concepts and visuals. Creating an opportunity for young writers, designers, photographers, illustrators, and those alike to make themselves known in a world that shields us from adventuring further. And though the path to achieve this was grueling for everyone involved on this dynamic team of ours, I do believe that we’ve accomplished the most we have ever done.

Through Continuum, we press on. While still embracing where we have come from, to where we are now and the places we’ll go in the days to come, we graciously accept the next chapter of our lives. Through Continuum, I no longer think “if only I had a little more time” because time is what you make of it. And as I leave FLASH in capable and talented hands...I say no, this isn’t the end of the line.

Warm Wishes Your Former Creative Director

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L E T T E R F ROM T H e c u r r e n t C r e a t i v e d i r e c t o r

I feel incredibly lucky and cool to be taking over as creative director. I am entirely new to the team, and coming in as an outsider has let me fully appreciate Flash’s balance between being cool and aware; crafting their response to the current political moment with aesthetic cleanness and levity. It is clear that Flash stays relevant.

I just transferred to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Like most people, I am coming out of this year of stagnation and loss (April-April) a different person. I have a different direction and mindset, moving to an unfamiliar city, using new pronouns that feel right. While these changes were devastating and disorienting at first— as was the year generally— I am trying to be bold.

This also carries into the creative realm— I continue to think about art and my fashion as a way of breaking rules and moving outside the box. I am still figuring out what this means and how to be unafraid in my boldness. While I do work in graphic design, my heart is in sculptural installation— I find so much joy in blending multiple mediums to create immersive experiences. I want to bring this multimedia attitude and sampling platter of textures, patterns, colors, and energies to print….

I want to go wild. I hope to bring my artistic flair, a color trippy electricity to this already so sexy magazine. I hope that you will follow me in this process, as I learn what it means to forget playing it safe.

I don’t want to make any promises I can’t keep.

But in this process of trying to be bold, I am also buying big shoes and pushing myself to fill them. I am putting out these lofty goals of rule breaking and electric color out into the ether, with the hope that they motivate me to achieve them. I am excited for this experiment and I hope you are too.

With all sincerity, Flash is such an incredible magazine, and I am really honored to be a part of it. In the short time I have been on the meetings and worked with this team, everyone seems super dedicated to crafting excellent issues, with sociocultural relevance and importance. Flash is peoples’ baby, and you can tell. I am excited to join in on this family affair.

Thank you to Bawila for all she has done to make this transition smooth, and for her trust and willingness to give me something she has so beautifully created.

With love, and see you soon, Ella Baseman they/them

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credits Culture The Power of Nostalgia, Sweetener of Time Layout Designer: Ruby Lee

How Social Distancing Brought Us Closer Than Ever Layout Designer: Ruby Lee

Euphoria’s Special Episodes Give Us the Therapy Sessions We Need Layout Designer: Bawila Idris

The Circle of Identity Layout Designer: Bawila Idris

The Timeliness of Timeless literature Layout Designer: Bawila Idris

Fashion Welcome to the Jungle: Rebecca Minkoff’s Spring ‘21 NYFW Presentation Layout Designer: Kathryn Schulte

Gender nonconformity throughout history and on TikTok Layout Designer: Kathryn Schulte

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Beauty What is Real Beauty Anymore?

Layout Designer: Celia Patterson Images from: top left page: @shudu.gram, bottom left page: @bermudaisbae, top right page: @imma.gram, bottom right page: @lilmiquela

5 Asian-Owned Beauty Brands to Support Layout Designer: Celia Patterson

Cut and Paste: The Permanence of Facial Feature Trends Layout Designer: Celia Patterson Images from Pinterest

Opinions Old is the New, Again

Layout Designer: Ruby Lee

Comfort’s Comeback Amid a Pandemic Ridden World Layout Designer: Kathryn Schulte

Hope, Renewal, Balance - Predicting Post-Covid Fashion Layout Designer: Bawila Idris

Cover photos Photographer Ruby Lee

Model

Kayla Kojima

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