A couple months ago I had an interesting thought pop into my head. But then I kinda pushed it down into the depths of my brain like, “Brittany, that’s retarded. STOP.” Until I saw that Hazel of Bonjour Girl had pondered the same thing: Is fashion blogging a form of performance art? Let’s consult the Wikipedia:
"Performance art is a performance presented to an audience…(it) may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or via media…Performance art can happen anywhere, in any venue or setting and for any length of time."
So…thatta be a YES. (Agree, disagree?) As much as we like to think our blog is a total representation of our truest selves; it seems to me that we all kinda create characters, or at the very least caricatures of ourselves, by exaggerating certain characteristics and oversimplifying others. I don’t think it’s a bad thing; I think it's SO much fun! But, gotta admit that we are constantly editing how we want this online performance to look, feel, and sound. So if we’re all editors now, could our blogs one day be read like a book? One hundred years from now, could some chick-a-dee dive deep into the depths of the internet and find your blog and read it like, cover to cover? Read allllllll the way back to your FIRST post and think to herself, “That was such a great read! And what marvelous photos of vintage fashions! This is a fabulous lil collection of the thoughts and wonderings of the life of a 20-something living in the USA way back in 2013.” Would it be a primary source? Or is it fiction? Or maybe it’s read like a Diary, like the Diary of Anne Frank…only you replace all her real world problems with 1% problems. Like complaining about how you didn’t get invited to NYFW and shit ;)
PS- The dress, baby blue angora sweater AND the fab fur stoll are all available in my shop…although if you are reading this from the future they will probably be sold out.
PPS- Also if you’re reading this from the future I just wanna say sorry. Like, about the general state of things on earth. Our bad.
Vintage ABS dress. Vintage sweater. Vintage Stoll. H&M beanie. Theory booties.
Until next time,
Brittany
Mind... blown.
ReplyDelete-Zoe
I think it definitely can be a type of performance art! Depends what your aim is :)
ReplyDeleteRachel @ AMomentInTime.
xo
I honestly never thought about it that way......blerg my life would probably seem kinds boring haha!!!!!! But that is a great way to look at blogs!!! Ahhh loving the baby blue angora sweater/this entire outfit!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteBrooke @ what2wear
Great shoes!
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I agree with performance art ^^
My nail polish blog nails-and-more.blogspot.com
First off, thanks for sharing your thoughts on my abstract photography, very interesting interpretations! I liked this post a lot, not only the outfit is beautiful but you made some valid points here. I feel as if we do create some kind of characters to a degree, but it's still us. And by playing those personas we've created - we gradually become them somewhere along the way. But for all the future people and blog readers, I think this is a marvelous way to find out about fashion from another decade from real people. Meaning: not books, magazines and haute couture designers. Now I wish Coco Chanel or Mary Quant had a blog - I'd enjoy reading them! Much love from www.moiminnie.blogspot.com x
ReplyDeleteIn love with this outfit! Has really inspired me on how to wear a shift dress!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.voguevndal.blogspot.com.au
http://www.voguevndal.blogspot.com.au
Your posts always make me want to talk for 100 years.
ReplyDeleteThe idea that we exaggerate certain aspects and suppress others is so dead on. What's so difficult is that I'm always feeling different on different days, so I'm always exaggerating different things different days, and failing at presenting a "uniform character" - like the truly successful blogs do to market themselves.
Anyhow - your point that fashion blogging is a form of performance, I think, is totally the case. I, myself, me, the real Gabby, hates getting pictures of herself taken and is probably more comfortable while wearing a wire thong than while modeling.
Alas.
Life is confusing.
To continue this novel of a comment,
I am OBSESSED with the textures in this outfit. The fact that you combined three items, all of the same texture, is BRILLIANT. putting that shirt underneath the dress reminds me of Gary Pepper's coat: (http://fellt.com/garypepper/2013/02/nemo)
Yay for awesome styling . INspired.
-Gabrielle
PS:
ReplyDeleteI HAVE THAT BEANIE!!!
Nothing but love *___* this outfit is so amazing! XX
ReplyDeleteFashionvitae.blogspot.com
Very interesting! I never thought about it that way before, but now I think fashion blogging can definitely be performance art! And by the way, your outfit here is stunning. Love that scarf.
ReplyDeleteI feel like every time I come onto this blog you guys are ALWAYS discussing things that I have planned for my future posts. It's a great place to get a different perspective on a subject before I discuss it.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the blog being a sort of performance art I completely agree and in the past 3 months as a fine arts student focusing her work on style I have actually decided to have my blog be my art piece. It is something you are doing daily (usually), documenting and then writing about in terms of what inspired it or what you walked away with when wearing the outfit. These are all the major components that make up fine art. On top of that this is not something that we are creating in the confides of our studio but wearing and living in every day, thus making the effects of clothing and style a very extreme experience. Although we may all wear clothing every day and examine it as an expression of ourselves I don't think that all personal style blogs are working in a way that would make them performance art pieces but there are definitely many that are.
-Ashley Garner www.elegantidiosyncrasy.com
I have to admit, I did read all the way back to your very first post!
ReplyDeleteMaria xxx
Such a chic outfit, love the dress!
ReplyDeleteTara
www.thestylerawr.com
xoxo
Red is a lovely colour on you! xo
ReplyDeleteLove this look, loving the dress and the houndstooth detailing!
ReplyDeletehttp://defineduchessee.blogspot.com.au
Thank you for the lovely comment on my blog :)
ReplyDeleteI definitely think blogging-and fashion in general is inspired by performativity. It allows us to create, shape and reinvent our identities at will which is very liberating! Love your interpretation of little-black-dress-meets-skater-chic! I am following you now, would really love a follow back if you like my blog :)
Christobel x
www.calico-casa.blogsot.co.uk
i'm freaking out over how much i have a crush on this blog.
ReplyDeletei look at blogging like that too, even if you want to look at it in a more micro way and know that you as an individual will have a way to remember this stage of your life when you're older - all the words we use now, what we wear, what's important to us. and it's all like a public, multi-media diary.
the world... whoa.
fraululu.blogspot.com
Loving that look! Its hot.
ReplyDeleteThe performance can be live or via media…Performance art can happen anywhere, in any venue or setting and for any length of time. Good stuff i have read here.
ReplyDelete