Does fashion need a purpose?

Indigo Editor, Cameron Beech debates the reason for fashion and fashion’s end purpose

With the Schiaparelli ss23 runway discourse, DUCFS selling out their final night in the record time of 0.8 seconds and an increased fascination in award show fashion, there has not been a better time to reflect on fashion’s purpose. Does fashion even require a purpose? Can it not ceaselessly exist, or must there be an agenda attached to the clothing we wear?

Depending on who you ask, fashion is either a wearable piece of art and an article of artistic composition, or simply a way we cover our nakedness. Coming from an artistic background, my take on fashion is that its versatility transcends to something beyond the realms of art.

been the Fall-Winter 2014/15 ready-to-wear collection, set against the backdrop of a luxury convenience store and Fall-Winter 2016/17 Haute Couture, where the models walk through what looks to be a fashion studio, paying homage to the process of creating fashion whilst pairing the aesthetic with the unaesthetic, the glamorous with the unglamorous, and showcasing the product against the backdrop of where it was initially born.

Fashion functions as an independent living, breathing organism, constantly evolving and adapting to social, political and economic climates

St Mary’s College charity fashion show, Revival, beautifully revived the ability for fashion to be fun and exciting. It was refreshing to see the models having fun, dancing, engaging with spectators and feeling the music, making fashion into an enjoyable, intoxicatingly exhilarant and fun experience. It was a testament to the idea that there is more to fashion than just clothes its about how it makes you feel, the emotions it achieves. Fashion is like that friend that hypes you up, inspires you, makes you realise your potential, and the fashion show functions as the mouthpiece.

Fashion functions as an independent living, breathing organism, constantly evolving and adapting to social, political and economic climates and ceasing to be, if neglected. It polarises people, pushes the bounds of comfortability and inspires wider political debates, such as if the body wears the art or the art wears the body, the danger of trend culture and culture of aesthetics and if fashion’s primary function is artistic or practical? Fashion shows act as temporary, living art galleries as we experience the art come to life in the model’s movements. Models do not simply wear the garments but give the piece a lifeline. After initially attending DUCFS to watch a friend walk the runway, I came away in absolute awe of its artistic spectacle and sensational visuals.

French fashion brand, Chanel, have always given particular attention to the art of set designs; some particular standout designs in previous years have

Content

Events (page 3), Film & TV (pages 4), Style (page 5), Music (pages 6 & 7), Features (page 8), Interview (page 9), Creative Writing (page 10), Books (page 11), Food & Drink (page 12), Stage (page 13), Visual Arts (page 14), Travel (page 15).

Indigo logo: Adeline Zhao

Cover image: Victoria Cheng

Artwork of the week: Emma Jesperson

Much in the same way fashion shows engineer inspiration and push the bounds of potential, this edition of Indigo aims to achieve the same. Coming up in this edition of Indigo, Style (page 5) investigate necklace boycotting on the red carpet, Music (pages 6 & 7) delve into the history of protest music and Stage (page 13) look into the playwrights aspiring for an Olivier

Artwork of the week: By

Emma Jesperson

Team

Charlotte Grimwade, Cameron Beech, Melissa Rumbold, Roshni Suresh Babu, Siobhan Eddie, Elizabeth Buckley, Theo Mudhir, Amelie Lambie-Proctor, Lydia Doyle, Lily Lake, Ruhee Parelkar, Annie Pickup, James Macfarlane, Rae Rostron, Alice Purves, Jacob Dax Harris, Lotte Micklethwaite, Charlotte Rodney, Isabella Harris, Tom Harbottle, Millie Adams, Eve Kirman, Elif Karakaya, Caitlin Ball.

Contact

www.palatinate.org.uk

Follow our socials

Facebook: www.facebook.com/palindigo Instagram: @indigo.palatinate

Have a question, comment or an article idea? Email us at indigo@palatinate.org.uk or any Indigo section email address

Image credit: Adeline Zhao