Research Analysis.

Folk Fashion: Understanding Homemade Clothes

By Amy Twigger Holroyd.
Reading: Chapter 3 - Identity, Connection and the Fashion Commons.

Tutor: Lorraine Warde

and Context 2
DCCT20001: Design, Culture
2017/18
BA (Hons) Fashion Design
Luci Hulme
 Constructing Identites: how clothing and style helps to
assemble identities within contemporary Western culture.
When I get dressed in a morning, Twigger Holroyd puts forward the
I consider what I’m going to
idea that “dressing
can
be doing that day, where I’ll be
going and who I could potentially be seen as a practice
be seeing, and each of these
factors helps determine how I
of constructing
choose to dress myself. After identity through the
reading Identity, Connection and
the Fashion Commons I was
materials of fashion.”
(Twigger Holroyd 2017, p52)
drawn to the ideas presented by
Through the use of the term
Amy Twigger Holroyd of clothes
“constructing” which comes
having the power to construct
from the lexical field of that
complex identities within
of craft, Twigger Holroyd
contemporary Western culture.
highlights the notion that
Explorations of the self, identity,
through an individual’s choice
society, fashion and subculture
of clothing, they consciously
are each addressed within the
assemble an appearance to
extract.

Fig 1 Kick Over the Statues (2016) by Even Spencer

present within society. This idea is
supported by postmodern theorist
Leicht in who states “Self-
decoration is part of
self-constitution, body
image and identity
formation” (Leicht 1996,
p124.) These views work in
conjunction with one and other as
both suggest that by adorning the
body in selected materials, the
wearer is dictating how to present
themselves and furthermore their
identity.
Fig 2. Colourful Hip Hop duo at New York Fashion Week (2010) by Yuan Rodic
 Veblen’s theory of conspicuous
consumption1 is touched upon
by Twigger Holroyd in a sense
when she articulates that “One
way in which a person
creates their identity
in this contemporary
context is through
their possessions.”
(Twigger Holroyd 2017, p52)
Although not directly focused on
Veblen’s theory, Twigger Holroyd
leans towards the notion that
within contemporary Western
society, individuals choose to
enhance their identity through
the possessions they behold.
Possessions in this sense can be
presumed to be clothing, shoes,
makeup and other articles which
enhance appearance. Twigger
Holroyd does not make the
assumption that individuals are
trying to “impress” others by the
presentation of their possessions
as Veblen’s theory would state,
more so she highlights the idea
that they use their possessions
as a tool in order to assemble
their identity.

1 expenditure on or consumption
of luxuries on a lavish scale in an attempt
to enhance one’s prestige. Fig 3.Vintage female with 50’s style
(2004) by Iain Mckell
 When looking at the notion of
forming an identity through one’s
apparel choices, the decision
about which items of clothing
the wearer decides upon is
often informed by their social
environment. Twigger Holroyd
affirms this idea through quoting
Tim Dant’s Material Culture in
the Social World “Wearing
Clothes is social in
that what people
wear is treated by
those around them
as being some sort of
indicator of who they
are.” (Dant 1999, p107) Here
the lexis “Indicator” connotes
that clothes almost signpost, or
give meaning to an individual’s
identity. They convey a message
and are a method of none verbal
communication to present to the
viewer who, in fact, the wearer
is and where they position
themselves within society.
Upholding this belief, research
journalist Mary Lynn Damhorst
writes “We
express
much through
dress, including our
Fig 4. Image from Skins and Suedes (2017) by Owen Harvey
 personal identities,
our relationships with
others and the types
of situations in which
we are involved.”
(Damhorst, 2005, p67.) Looking
further into these ideas, the
social environment in which an
individual places themselves
can regularly be referred to as a
subculture. Often, a key identifier
of a specific subculture is the
apparel that the members of
said subculture choose to wear,
furthermore giving strength
to the idea of clothes allowing
an individual to construct their
own social identity and being
indicators of said individual’s
societal environment.
544 words
After being inspired by the idea
of identities and subcultures
being formed through clothing,
I was prompted to look into
subculture photography as a
way of being able to visualise
these ideas. Photographer Nikki
S Lee who’s work explores the
ideas of cultural immersion, has
created a series of projects in
which she transforms herself by
way of clothing, makeup, styling
and accessories in order to ‘fit
in’ with a certain subculture or
societal group. Engaging with
the members of the group, Lee
then asks an individual to use
her ‘point and shoot’ camera
to take a snapshot of her in
and amongst the rest of the
group. Lee is able to completely
transform her Korean identity
into the identities of those she
surrounds herself with and in
turn produces candid shots.
Fig 5. The Hip Hop Project, 2001, Nikki S Lee
 In this image of The Hip
Hop Project, Lee blends in
seamlessly among the rest
of the individuals. With a grey
leather chair at the forefront of
the image, it could be presumed
the photograph was taken in a
taxi, perhaps on the way to a
party as the individuals seem
to be dressed up, wearing
chains and jewellery. Pictured
wearing a hat and sunglasses,
Lee’s slight leant back head
tilt and glazed expression has
connotations of her being drunk,
which would link to the idea of
the group heading to a party.
Lee positions herself between
a male’s legs and he is seen to
have one arm around her waist,
a pose often seen within hip hop
music videos. The pose signifies
the idea that Lee belongs to the
male she is sat with and he is
asserting his dominance over
her. With the male pointing
his fingers to the camera and
forming a gestural gun sign,
there are suggested links to hip
hop music and gang culture,
something regularly discussed in
the media particularly within the
late 1990’s and early 2000’s when
hip hop music dominated charts.
Lee’s makeup in the image,
with large winged eyeliner and
 overdrawn lips draws attention
to those features in a sensual
way.

Another image within Lee’s

“Project’ series sees her sat on a
concrete pavement, in a doorway
with a male punk figure. Lee
transformed her identity once
more in this image by changing
her hair colour, adorning her
neck with heavy chains and
clothing herself in mesh, ripped
tights and leather garments.
The pair look comfortable
having placed themselves in the
doorway with their possessions
scattered amongst them, as
though they belong there as
opposed to within the building.
The punk subculture is often
linked to rebellion and out casted
individuals, highlighted by the
two sat alone, looking deep in
conversation with one and other,
unaffected by the world around
them. Once more, Lee uses
clothing to suggest an identity,
the rips in her clothing give
strength to the idea that punks
are defiant and non-conformant
of societal norms.
Fig 6. The Punk Project, 1997, Nikki S Lee
 “Every day we make
decisions about the
social status and
role of the people we
meet by what they
are wearing: we treat
their clothes as social
hieroglyphics.”(Barnard,
2002, p9.) Lee’s work draws
attention to the ideas Barnard
describes of clothing and
appearance having links to
creating an identity, which in
turn allows others to form
a judgement based on an
appearance. Our daily clothing
choices strongly inform our
identities within contemporary
western culture, our choices
inform where we see, or perhaps
more importantly where we
would like others to see us
within society.

547 Words
List of Illustrations
Fig 1. Kick Over the Statues (2016) by Even Spencer. [Online] Avail-
able at http://www.dazeddigital.com/photography/gallery/22861/3/
even-spencer-s-kick-over-the-statues [Accessed 20th February
2018]

Fig 2. Colourful Hip Hop duo at New York Fashion Week (2010) by
Yuan Rodic. From Rodic, Y, 2010. FaceHunter. United Kingdom:
Thames and Hudson

Fig 3. Vintage female with 50’s style (2004) by Iain Mckell. From: Mck-
ell I, and Farrelly L, 2004. Fashion Forever: 30 years of subculture.
London: Immprint

Fig 4. Image from Skins and Suedes (2017) by Owen Harvey. [Online]
Available at http://www.owen-harvey.com/Skins-and-Suedes [Ac-
cessed 20th February 2018]

Fig 5. Hip Hop, 2001, Nikki S Lee [Online] Available at http://guggen-

heim.org/artwork/12992 [Accessed 20th February 2018]

Fig 6. Punk Project, 2001, Nikki S Lee [Online] Available at http://gug-

genheim.org/artwork/9534 [Accessed 20th February 2018]

Cover Images - Own images of girl presenting different identities

through clothing.

List of References
Barnard, M, 2002. Fashion as Communication. 2nd Edition. London:
Routledge.

Damhorst, M, Miller-Spillman, K.A, Michelman, S.O. The Meaning of

Dress. 2nd Edition. New York: Fairchild publications.

Dant, T, 1999. Material Culture in the Social World: Values, Activities,

Lifestyles. Buckingham: Open University Press.

Leicht, V.b, 1996. Costly Compensation, Postmodern Fashion, Politics,

Identity. Modern Fiction Stories, Volume 42 (2) pp.111-128. Avail-
able at: https://search.proquest.com/docview/208051819/fulltex-
t/4AD88AACB2BB48DBPQ/1?accountid=14693 [Accessed 19th Febru-
ary 2018]

Twigger Holroyd, A, 2017. Folk Fashion: Understanding Homemade

Clothes. London: I.B. Taurus & Co

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