Dear Diary,
The world of fashion is a dichotomy of two extremes converging into a subsequent industry superficially constructed of PR reps, celebrity brand ambassadors, and editorial mafia. The truth is, artistry and commercialism are now blurred into a single entity void of credibility and lost in translation. Today, a fashion entrepreneur holds the same sense of entitlement as a true artist would because unfortunately, we no longer care to differentiate the two.
We fell under Anna Wintour’s spell of celebrity cover models, which forever replaced the Cindy’s, Claudias, Naomis, and Lindas of the industry. We follow Kim Kardashian on twitter and buy whatever she tells us too—even clothing from Sears. We will hang onto every instagram photo blogged by college dropouts and under achievers; forgetting it’s all based on a barter system of product placement for an invite to an exclusive event previously reserved for only real industry professionals. It’s the new face of the fashion scene. And it’s depressing.
But this is now the world we live in—it is one where “Likes” define your success and the number of followers determines how much access is granted. Talent has been replaced with popularity and artistry with a shallow desire to become famous.
And what do us old school lovers of design do? Well, we start a blog apparently: www.shoesanddrama.com. We open twitter accounts and public Facebook pages. We write for online publications because print will soon be dead. We selfishly plug ourselves every chance we get because only followers matter in this world. It is no longer about our technical expertise, years of experience, nor our talent.
And we have no choice, but conform because today there is no difference between a fashion designer and a fashion entrepreneur. There is no comparison between a studied editor and a novice blogger.
Sincerely,
Fashion-editor-turned-blogger
While there is a lot of conformity, it still begs the question as to which is more powerful? A professional fashion journalist who writes a review of worth, critiquing a collection or a blogger who has a good PR contact list and a blog which is a display of affluence?? Buying (or being bought!) your way to the FROW seems to be no issue.