global pedestrians
by Justina Lee
You know this already: fashion bloggers are the world’s new celebrities. They are sitting alongside editors and stars in Fashion Week, and their daily sartorial choices are being emulated by youngsters everywhere.
But if you look more closely into these trendsetters’ profiles, you’ll be surprised by the backdrop of their fashionable lives: Stockholm, Singapore, Paris, Berlin, Hong Kong, Tokyo…this is when you feel compelled to borrow a catchphrase from economists: the world of fashion is flat. Consider the front-row crew at New York Fashion Week: Rumi Neely hails from California; Susie Bubble is a British-born Chinese; Bryan Boy is Filipino. Big-name bloggers from traditional fashion capitals are also focusing their cameras outside their native countries: Scott Schuman of The Sartorialist has shot in Berlin, Stockholm, Shanghai, and other foreign locations; the French blogger, Garance Doré, also travels afar. Meanwhile, almost every modern city has a blog celebrating its chic pedestrians. And if you want a mix of different styles, visit Lookbook, a blog that collects self-submitted photos of fashionistas from all over the world. The site allows readers to browse according to country – and the total number of countries? 48. A reason why international street style has spread around the world more rapidly than other aspects of culture (such as music or movies), is that language is hardly a barrier in fashion. Style is the lingua franca in fashion; you do not have to understand the blogger’s commentaries to appreciate his or her playful accessories or subtly elegant ensemble. Garance Doré, for example, was entirely French until she shot to fame in the non-French-speaking world. Similarly, Miss at la Playa, a Madrid-based blog, was entirely Spanish a few years ago; now, like Garance Doré, it is bilingual.
Consequently, while the Internet usually spreads mainstream American culture in other aspects, it has done the opposite in fashion. Media coverage may still be centered on the fashion capitals, but street style blogs are reminding us that fashion is indeed everywhere: you don’t have to live in New York or Paris to be stylish. Style-arena.jp (www.style-arena.jp), for example, exhibits the youthful and often avant-garde style of the Japanese. A brief scan of the photos is telling enough: bright colors, funky experiments with mix and match and of course, the ubiquitous dyed platinum blonde hair. Facehunter presents the quirky and bold style of the British – made famous by Agyness Deyn and Susie Bubble. And if Japanese or British street styles don’t seem new to you, look to Stockholm, deemed “fascinating” by Scott Schuman. The sophistication and personality of Swedish fashionistas are certainly up to speed with their French or Italian counterparts. The impact of international street style is subtle, but not unnoticeable. As we are made aware of how differently the fashion-savvy across the globe dress, the standards of the word “fashionable” are also being widened. It is possible that the accessibility of fashion news and editorials may cause our styles to converge, but even more likely is the creation of unique styles with runway essentials as well as exotic elements from fashionistas near and far. To borrow from economists again: that is fashion globalization.
Photo credits: The wonderful users of lookbook.nu http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com http://www.style-arena.jp/en/street Blogs: http://www.garancedore.fr/en/ http://missatlaplaya.blogspot.com/ http://facehunter.blogspot.com/ http://www.bryanboy.com