Posted: May 16th, 2016

‘Presenting the fashionable self’: A critical analysis of a contemporary style icon, referencing sociological fashion theories of trend diffusion and identity construction.

rief – ‘Presenting the fashionable self’: A critical analysis of a contemporary style icon, referencing sociological fashion theories of trend diffusion and identity construction.

During the lectures for this subject, you will have been introduced to a number of sociological theories that relate to fashion. These discuss various ways in which individuals use fashion to communicate ideas about themselves to others.
Clothing, accessories, make-up and even the way we stand or behave when dressed in certain garments, send a visual message to those around us. What are those messages saying? Why do we want to send these messages? How do those around us read the messages?
To better understand these ideas in action, this assignment requires you look at the messages sent by certain contemporary style icons.

*Madonna*

There are plenty of images of each of these celebrities that show these individuals that project very different messages. Once you have selected your style icon – find THREE images that portray this person as different versions of themselves – e.g
David Beckham as super-star footballer / David Beckham as underwear model / David Beckham as doting father
From these images, analyse how the celebrity has presented themselves to the public. Look at the garments, accessories, hair & make-up, location, posture or pose of the person – what does this tell us about the character they are playing in this image?
For example:
David Beckham as super-star footballer = masculine powerful
David Beckham as underwear model = desi