'Clown Couture'

posted Saturday, 11 July 2009

Paris Fall Fashion Week 2009

'Haute couture' , literally translated means "high sewing" and is more generally the term given to garments created by avant-guard tailors and seamstresses who must meet strict guidelines and well-defined standards before they can show or offer their creations in this elitist, but much desired genre.

To be called a 'haute couture house', a business must belong to the Syndical Chamber for Haute Couture in Paris, which is regulated by the French Department of Industry. Those lucky enough (or not) to fill the bill must present a collection of at least 35 outfits for daytime or evening wear. Each outfit is specially hand sewn and made to order. The price for any creation could well exceed $100,000.In today's economy, that's a lot of bling.

Haute couture is much like modern art: the significance is much within the eyes of the beholder. We here feel that it is a ridiculous platform in which eccentric artists try to set the standards of 'beauty' to which they hope the general public will buy into-perhaps in some form of a spin-off-to enhance their fame and fortune. It is future-world stuff, unobtainable for most. More important is the whole idea of establishing what is beautiful and what is not. We've all read about the fall-out from the hype of skeletally thin models and their unfortunate adoring fans. What about the idea of hyping clown make-up and Halloween garb?