K. Sara Aishwarya
GOTHIC LOLITA
April 2021
LOLITA ロリータ
Lolita ( ) is a Japanese fashion inspired primarily by the clothing and general aesthetics of the Rococo and Victorian periods. This fashion movement started in Japan in the 1980's and has evolved greatly since. Nowadays Lolita fashion has grown to be relatively popular all over the world.
While it is true that most fashions are open to various interpretations, the term Lolita is used exclusively to describe a very specific (one could say narrow) look that is created by abiding by a number of strict guide-lines and principles. The "rules" of Lolita fashion don't exist to limit the wearer but are rather qualifiers of what makes an outfit Lolita. Within these rules however there are a variety of styles.
In addition to being a fashion, some people enjoy living a "Lolita lifestyle" in which one sees Lolita as more of a philosophy of living beautifully rather than just dressing it. Someone living a Lolita lifestyle may try and live like a princess, surrounding themselves with things of beauty, and taking part in a number of ‘proper’ feminine activities such as baking, embroidery, sewing and other old-fashioned "women's" activities.
TYPES OF LOLITA STYLES Gothic Lolita is a style of Lolita that is primarily influenced by victorianinspired Goth styles. The style was popularized by Mana, a japanese musician.
Sweet Lolita is a style of Lolita that contains features nearly exclusive to Lolita. It is also the most child-like of the styles, using many bows, ruffles and light colors to make up an outfit.
Classic Lolita is a style of Lolita that is highly inspired by historic fashion. It radiates the elegance of a victorian lady, and appears more mature than other Lolita styles.
Guro Lolita is a style of Lolita that focuses less on sweetness or elegance and more on horror. Blood splatters, bandages, eye patches, and fake bruises are the common themes.
Ero lolita is a more uncommon style that resembles normal lolita style, but is slightly more revealing and often has fetish elements such as collars, handcuffs, garters, and vinyl fabric.
Punk Lolita is apparently the combination of punk and Lolita. And it features plaid fabrics, metal buttons, metal chains, studs, leather belts and etc.
TYPES OF LOLITA STYLES Cyber Lolita is a style of Lolita that is the combination with Cybergoth which revolves around futuristic imagery. Futuristic motifs are most commonly seen.
Hime Lolita is a style of Lolita that focuses on a princess-like appearance. It can look very similar to Classic Lolita, but there are many decorative elements borrowed from Sweet.
Deco Lolita is any style of Lolita with an excessive amount of decoration. This style decorates the whole outfit from head-to-toe with a high amount of accessories.
Military Lolita is a style of Lolita that builds off themes of classic military uniforms. Design elements are from historical military uniforms, usually more formal style uniforms.
Country Lolita is sort of what you would get if a Classic or Sweet Lolita grew up on a farm in the countryside. Prints include fruits, baskets, hats and gingham, etc
Natural Lolita revolves around nature. It is focused on extra layering in the form of ruffled skirts or scarves, also heavier use of natural imagery and materials, and lace.
TYPES OF LOLITA STYLES Nun Lolita is a style of Lolita that is inspired by the orthodox clothing of nuns. It is inspired by Mana-sama during his Malice Mizer era which was mid 1990s.
Old-School Lolita also known as Traditional Lolita, is a style of Lolita that is the original version of the fashion, from before prints were standard. They are less print based and more design based.
Nurse Lolita is a style of Lolita that is very much inspired by hospital imagery. It is almost only defined by medical motifs and not on the clothing.
Hijab Lolita is a style of Lolita that describes the outfits of Hijabi, women who wear the islamic head-covering, that follow Lolita fashion. The hijabs are usually handmade.
Pirate Lolita is a style of Lolita which is pirate-themed. Accessories such as tricorns, eyepatches, and props such as swords and purses shaped like treasure chests are often seen.
Sailor Lolita is a style of Lolita that is very much inspired by japanese sailor uniforms and nautical motifs. Sailor Ouji also exists, where the skirt is swapped for a pair of shorts.
TYPES OF LOLITA STYLES Steam Lolita is a style of Lolita that is the combination with Steampunk fashion which is a western style that revolves around a futuristic victorian era.
Shiro Lolita is a Lolita outfit made entirely of white/cream/off-white clothing. The wearers often pair themselves with Kuro Lolitas in twin outfits to create an interesting contrast.
Casual Lolita can best be described as what a Lolita would wear when not 'dressing up.' Still modest, and elegant but extra like most other Lolita styles.
Kuro Lolita is a Lolita outfit made entirely of black clothing. The wearers often pair themselves with Shiro Lolitas in twin outfits to create an interesting contrast.
Wa Lolita is a style of Lolita that is the combination with Japanese kimono. Wa Lolita is more expensive than some other substyles.
Qi Lolita is a style of Lolita that is the combination with Chinese qipao. It is also refered to as Han Lolita when being based on hanfu.
INTRODUCTION TO GOTHIC LOLITA As a youth subculture, Gothic Lolita is a hybrid fashion of Western and nonWestern cultures emerged in the 1990s, linking the historical European style and Japanese aesthetical concept. According to Monden (2008, p.38), “the Gothic Lolita has formed a style that is neither European nor Japanese, but at the same time both European and Japanese.” The EGL39, The Gothic & Lolita Fashion Community which is an English-speaking worldwide association of Gothic Lolita lovers. These members who come from more than 14 different countries exchange their information such as cultural issues and Gothic Lolita items and this community causes the development of the Gothic Lolita subculture.
Lolita fashion is intricate, layered, and visually modest; a version of femmehood that doesn't hinge on sexual maturity, or traditional notions of (straight male-centric) sexuality. Lolita fashion reached its most popular heights back in the early to mid-2000s through the crossover medium of "visual kei" bands, which brought with them a melange of gothic, aristocratic, and heavy metal aesthetic influences—Gothic Lolita style, which has a more macabre focus than traditional Lolita looks.
FEATURES SILHOUETTE Gothic Lolita follows the basic Lolita silhouette. Bell skirts, JSKs, and dresses are usually worn with bellshaped petticoats to give them the classic "cupcake" shape. Gothic Lolita may also follow the more "Classic" silhouette that uses an A-line petticoat rather that a bellshaped one, to give coordinates a more mature, elegant appearance.
FEATURES
MOTIFS & COLORS Common motifs in Gothic Lolita often include crosses or religious themes, bats, skulls, coffins, chandeliers, deep red roses, and castles. Darker colors, such as black, navy and royal blue, maroon, crimson, and deep purples are all common in Gothic Lolita. Black and white color combinations are somewhat taboo, but can be and have been done tastefully.
HAIR AND MAKEUP Common hair includes straightened or curled hair left down, though pigtails are sometimes worn. Sausage curls are also worn with more over-the-top coordinates. Common makeup includes dark lipstick (in wine, red, deep purple or even dark brown), smokey or neatly defined eyes, and light blush, although as with all Lolita substyles the look remains fairly natural. Black lipstick is almost never worn. Though Gothic makeup is associated with a white powdered face, this is not very common in Lolita as it can be seen as too over-the-top. It´s worth to mention that a popular Gothic Lolita, Mana, is often seen with a very dramatic make up, but this is not considered a "standard" look for the style.
FEATURES ACCESSORIES Common accessories for Gothic Lolita include bows or headdresses, simple bags, such as purses adorned with Gothic motifs, or more extravagant bags and wallets, and dark or black tights, stockings, or knee highs with lace tops. Jewelry tends to have gems in dark colors and silver and metal tones are more common than golden ones. Venice lace chokers or a rosary are often worn. Lace gloves are quite popular in this style.
SHOES Common shoes for Gothic Lolita are Mary Janes, Tea Party shoes, boots, and rocking horse shoes. Platform shoes are quite common, as well as low to mid size heels. They are usually in black or a dark color to match the coordinate.
DEPICTIONS IN CULTURE GOTHIC & LOLITA BIBLE Gothic & Lolita Bible (Goshikku ando Rorīta Baiburu) is a quarterly Japanese fashion "mook", a combination of a magazine and book, which focuses on the Gothic and Lolita fashions. It was first published in 2001 by Index Communications, and is a spin-off of the Japanese fashion magazine Kera. The mooks contain articles about- Clothes, Accessories, Food, Places to visit, Hairstyles, Make-up, etc.
The founder was Mariko Suzuki. The Japanese musician Mana originally proposed the creation of the Gothic & Lolita Bible and along with Kana, a Japanese singer-songwriter, helped to promote the magazine and the Lolita fashion by dressing in the fashion while performing. Essays by Japanese author Takemoto Novala about "the proper behavior and attitudes" of girls also influenced many to join the Lolita fashion and lifestyle. Most of the Gothic & Lolita Bible focuses on the Lolita fashion as it is "the more popular of the two fashions".
DEPICTIONS IN CULTURE GLIMPSE OF PAGES INSIDE GOTHIC & LOLITA BIBLE The website below provides color palettes, dates of publications and other details along will full digital scans of all volumes. http://www.lolitahistory.com/
DEPICTIONS IN CULTURE J-GOTH Also sometimes known as Gothic Lolita, J-Goth is a type of Gothic movement in Japan that spun off the Lolita styles they already had. In the picture to the right, Kanon Wakeshima, a pop artist and cellist, enjoys wearing Gothic Lolita style clothing. She was produced by Mana, a former member of the visual-kei 80's band Malice Mizer. People would say that he's responsible for the style. Visual-kei bands are bands that focus on drastic appearances around as much as their music, whether they're hardcore like Dir en Grey or softer like Malice Mizer. These bands typically like to blend Goth, Punk, and other elements into their appearance and many will try to look more feminine. These fashion choices helped spur the Lolita movement along. Gothic Lolita, or J-Goth, is debated as a type, but has close ties and relations to the style due to the black, ruffled, lacy dreses and accessories. Gothic Lolita is Japan's own rendition on the subculture among the many other types of Lolita. Many people sometimes use it to roleplay, since maid-style outfits can be seen just as much as somewhat sailor inspired outfits. An aesthetic pleasure that these Goths hope to capture in their dress is that of a porcelain doll, or a child with elaborate dress.
DEPICTIONS IN CULTURE No music genre is associated with this type, besides Visual-Kei, which relates to the fashion. There's no specific music that this type listens to, they're more fashion based than music based. A typical outfit for those who enjoy the J-Goth or Gothic Lolita type are ruffles, bows and lace on any length dresses, along with stockins and buckled mary-jane shoes. Bonnets and chokers, bracelets, lace parasols, stuffed animals, and other such things are also common for a person of this type to wear. Many clothes are DIY clothes- since Lolita can be a little on the expensive side. Makeup is very soft, smoky, or sometimes even neutral to resemble children or porcelain dolls, so it targets the eyes specifically. The skin is pale and smooth, and the eyes are done to stand out more like a doll's.
DEPICTIONS IN CULTURE ANIME Anime is hand-drawn and computer animation originating from Japan. In Japan and in Japanese, anime describes all animated works, regardless of style or origin. However, outside of Japan and in English, anime is colloquial for Japanese animation and refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. MANGA Manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term manga is used in Japan to refer to both comics and cartooning.
There are many female characters in animes and mangas who are gothic lolitas.
DEPICTIONS IN CULTURE
Lolita style exhibit, London's Victoria and Albert Museum
Pullip is a fashion doll line created by Cheonsang Cheonha of South Korea in 2003. On the right are few dolls from the Gothic Lolita themed collection.
Gothic & Lolita Psycho, is a 2010 Japanese film. Main character seeks revenge by cladding herself in gothic lolita fashion and killing off the assassins.
The Christon Café, Japanese Gothic Lolita Dungeon Dining
Stores that sell Gothic Lolita fashion
Angelic Pretty, Jarajuku
Atelier Pierrot, Osaka
Black Sugar Gothic Lolita Masque, Paris
Abilletage, Tokyo
DEPICTIONS IN CULTURE MOI-MÊME-MOITIÉ: HISTORY OF MANA’S GOTHIC LOLITA BRAND Mana was the guitarist of Malice Mizer, frontman of Moi dix Mois, and a big name on the scene of Lolita fashion. He is considered a pioneer in gothic lolita fashion, as it was made popular by him.
It was in 1999 when Moimême-Moitié was first established with the opening of stores in Tokyo and Nagoya. The name Moi-même-Moitié is a combination of French words “Moi même” meaning myself and “Moitié” meaning half. Right now, unfortunately, none of the physical Moimême-Motié stores remain open, gorgeous as they were. The brand’s slogan is ‘Elegant Gothic Lolita Aristocrat Vampire Romance’ and the brand is best known for its use of blue as it is Mana’s favorite color, along with black and white.
Moi-même-Moitié’s apparel is split into two lines—Elegant Gothic Lolita (EGL) and Elegant Gothic Aristocrat (EGA). EGL is feminineorientated, while EGA caters to more masculine and androgynous tastes. However, this does not mean that EGL is only for women, and EGA is only for men; Mana himself has modeled for both of Moitié’s lines for years, and everyone is highly encouraged to pick whatever style they think suits them best!
Mana
The EGL line consists of items such as dresses, skirts and jumper skirts (sporting lolita’s traditional silhouette of bellshaped poofy skirts worn over a voluminous petticoat), boleros, blouses and the like. EGA has a more unisex style to it with waistcoats, coats, long trousers, ruffled blouses and skirts that lack the lolita-esque poof. Some pieces from Moitié’s EGA line can be easily worn as part of a more punkish visual kei style. It is said that the reason for the brand’s split aesthetic is the fact that Mana presents himself both as a woman and a man, citing that there are simply two such sides within him; and thus Moitié represents to him the perfect woman (EGL) and the perfect man (EGA). Moi-même-Moitié embraces everything that is lolita and so much more, from religious imagery such as crosses, roses, to gothic architecture. This includes churches and cathedrals, or just parts of them, such as stained glass windows. In the few years after its inception, Moitié used to focus more on uniquely cut and designed dresses, rather than rely on prints. However, as the general appearance of Lolita fashion gradually shifted throughout the first decade of the new millennium, Moitié kept up with the changes and began producing more dresses with prints. Some of the prints became well-known and wellliked within the community quite quickly, for example, the popular monochromatic print Iron Gate. Moitié is, in general, quite renowned for their gorgeous monochromatic prints, but this, of course, isn’t the only thing the brand has to offer, even just among the prints.
BRAINSTORM / MINDMAP
BRAINSTORM / MINDMAP
ARTWORK AND DETAILS
INSPIRATION BOARD
MOOD BOARD
Black and White
ILLUSTRATION BOARD
THE END