Outcast Or Insider, Never Both

In the colourful culture of the weird and the booming business of the bizarre, are we leaving out more than what we are including?

- Valerie Wong

Individuality is precious. We celebrate it. We search for it. We define it with differences, set upon a backdrop of seeming sameness. But difference is not all rainbow and butterflies; it is a zero-sum game. The respect and clout achieved by establishing individuality is a perceived win, but we all know that there can never be winners without losers.

Individuality in the fashion world is ultimately bound by trends, which are reinterpreted and made novel with creative expression and flair. The emphasis of trends in fashion means that we are constantly bombarded by catchwords designed to reflect what is on the runway and what should be on our bodies. Hype, street, athleisure, statement, woke, forward, gender-neutral … the list could continue, but this writer runs the risk of galvanising the “hopeless millennials”. The point here is that words in the fashion world are quick to achieve an overused status, but some bear deeper implications than simply becoming humdrum.