POP ART

From political statements to larger-than-life expression, fashion and music have always been intertwined. For Vogue Singapore’s Pop’ issue, one editor explores a relationship as old as time.

- MAYA MENON

The relationship between music, fashion and expression has long been magnified. In March, Taylor Swift’s reign descended upon Singapore, resulting in a record-breaking six-day streak that drew fans from Southeast Asia and the world. The superstar’s 14 albums and gut-piercing lyrics haven’t just inspired a loyal legion of music lovers; among the flurry of excitement, there was a manifestation of outfits paying homage to the various eras of Swift’s career—resulting in a strong showing of sparkles, denim, fringe and friendship bracelets. Though currently the biggest pop culture showing of the worlds of music and fashion melding, the relationship between the two mediums has been intertwined for as long as we can remember. But where did the intersection begin?

The answer is as multifaceted as it is hard to singularly define. The beginnings of the relationship might be traced back to the 18th century. The 1820s ushered in romanticism, which was a pendulum swing from the rigidity and logic of the age of Enlightenment. This saw a newfound appreciation for music, art and design. Esteemed fashion historian Jane Ashelford explains this phenomenon in The Art of Dress: Clothes and Society, 15001914: “The Romantic movement stressed the creative power of the ‘shaping spirit of imagination’ and was motivated by a desire to escape from the chilly neoclassicalism of the turn of the century and the harsh realities of the Industrial Revolution. It manifested itself in dress by an enthusiasm for extrovert personal display and theatrical fashions which, in the 1820s and early 1830s, led to men wearing their clothes with a swaggering bravado and panache.”