Poets Are The New Fashion Icons

Rhyme and rhythm is how they compose their poetry, but it is their style that serves as a stamp. Poets are the new fashion icons, and their coats and couplets are loaded with messages, finds Akanksha Kamath

- Akanksha Kamath

In January, Amanda Gorman’s poetry performance on a world stage during the swearing-in ceremony of US president Joe Biden captivated audiences across continents and countries as she read ‘The Hill We Climb’. Her words reverberated with people, industries, and generations, and her style made fashion newsreels around the world. Search engine Lyst reported a 1,328-per-cent increase in searches for yellow coats after the Prada version Gorman wore, and her crown-like headband sold out almost as instantly as her video went viral on Instagram. Shortly after, IMG, a talent agency to Gigi and Bella Hadid, snapped up the wordsmith to represent her future brand partnerships. This series of events prompts the question: when did poetry become fashion’s new bedfellow?

STYLISTIC DEVICES

Fashion, as seen in Gorman’s performance, apart from being a conversation starter, can also be used to leave audiences with a lingering flavour of the poem long after it’s over. The reigning sentiment of hope in Gorman’s poem found a glorious canary yellow color in her outfit. “The color announced her to the world. Even before she began to recite at the ceremony, she caught one’s eye like a beautiful bird—wild, free and unbridled,” notes Kolkata-based poet Karuna Ezara Parikh.