+ All Categories
Home > Documents > Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

Date post: 18-Mar-2016
Category:
Upload: jade-leech
View: 219 times
Download: 1 times
Share this document with a friend
Description:
The essay question is: Clothing is fundamentally for us today an ornamental mask...do you agree or disagree?
Popular Tags:
17
1 Curt. J. Ducasse in his essay entitled “the art of personal beauty” argued that “Clothing is fundamentally for us today an ornamental mask.” Do you agree and if so why? In this essay, I am going to discuss my point of view on Curt. J. Ducasse’s opinion from his essay entitled “the art of personal beauty”. He stated that “Clothing is fundamentally for us today, an ornamental mask.” There are many points of view on this topic, whether Ducasse is right or wrong. I believe for the majority of individuals, that clothing is an ornamental mask. The definition of his statement could be interpreted as clothes hiding a person’s original beliefs and attitude towards life in general and fashion is used to hide this. The fact that Ducasse strongly suggests that fashion is a way of hiding our true selves can clearly be proven in his essay chapter, “the art of personal beauty”. To prove my theory, I will start looking at the history and background of the earliest fashion icons, to try and show their impact on the rest of society with the clothes that were worn. Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse
Transcript
Page 1: Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

1

Curt. J. Ducasse in his essay entitled “the art of personal beauty” argued that “Clothing is fundamentally for us today an ornamental mask.” Do you agree and if so why?

In this essay, I am going to discuss my point of view on Curt. J. Ducasse’s

opinion from his essay entitled “the art of personal beauty”. He stated that

“Clothing is fundamentally for us today, an ornamental mask.” There are

many points of view on this topic, whether Ducasse is right or wrong. I believe

for the majority of individuals, that clothing is an ornamental mask. The

definition of his statement could be interpreted as clothes hiding a person’s

original beliefs and attitude towards life in general and fashion is used to hide

this. The fact that Ducasse strongly suggests that fashion is a way of hiding

our true selves can clearly be proven in his essay chapter, “the art of personal

beauty”.

To prove my theory, I will start looking at the history and background of the

earliest fashion icons, to try and show their impact on the rest of society with

the clothes that were worn.

It was normal for society in the 1940s to the 1950s for children to dress like

their parents. The phrase “teenagers” was not yet known, therefore, young

adults were seen as copies of their parents. They did not have their individual

style or have an input for what they wanted to wear. But after the Second

World War had ended, more jobs were available and this allowed teenagers

to finally earn money and spend it on what they wanted. This gave them a

freedom that they had never had before. The fact that they had money to

spend on clothes meant that they had the option not to dress like their parents

Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse

Page 2: Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

2

anymore. It gave them a sense of identity and it was often seen as a form of

rebellion to go against the usual trend of copying their own parents.

The trend which became known as the “Teddy boy” was created and inspired

by dandies from the 18th century. This proves Ducasse’s theory that fashion is

used as an ornamental mask.

Teddy boy look

The fact that the “Teddy boy” look was inspired by something that’s already

been done, shows that teenagers only wore these clothes to stand out and be

noticed. In a way, teenagers only wore this look to fit in and feel accepted by

other young teenagers. Although it appears that they were giving themselves

a new sense of identity, they were merely “following the sheep” to just feel

accepted by the new breed of society. They did not individually create this

look; it was just a “disguise” to blend in with everyone and to be conventional.

Because this look had already been done before, it just was a technique used

to rebel against their parents.

Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse

Page 3: Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

3

In 1966, the sixteen year old Lesley Hornby, commonly known as “Twiggy”,

began her infamous modelling career. Twiggy’s young, skinny boy figure and

innocent, large eyes took the fashion industry by storm and paved the way in

making her one of the first original

supermodels to date.

This changed the latest “Teddy boy” look and gave teenage girls a chance to

explore the fashion styling option instead of wearing elegant shaped clothing,

such as “poodle skirts” that created the illusion of a feminine hourglass figure.

The key for 1950s fashion for women was to look womanly but when fashion

icon “Twiggy” began, the fashionable looked changed dramatically. From

fitted outfits that showed off curves, to the “hourglass” physique, the 1960s

dramatically changed this. The key look for women was to appear as similar

to young teenage boys as possible. Teenagers that showed no curves or

womanly shape were seen as fashionable and similar to fashion model

Twiggy.

In relation to Ducasse’s quote, although the fashion trends may be changing,

society still reflects their appearance to someone else. The fact that they

Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse

Twiggy aged 16

Page 4: Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

4

cannot change their own individual style without the rest of society doing it,

just helps prove Ducasse’s statement that: “clothing is fundamentally for us

today, an ornamental mask”.

In Ducasse’s essay, he stated that “This process of self-editing or self-

improvement may, as we emphasized, be directed not only to man's

person but also to his personality”. This could be interpreted as how society

changes their appearance to give a specific effect.

For example, we associate certain styles of clothing as an emotion or even

class. Wearing all black with heavy eye make up and piercings can be

described as the “emo” look. Black is another way of representing sadness

and death. Wearing these colours help explain a persons personality without

even talking to them, these are stereotypical representations that Ducasse

could be relating to. It is our feelings and emotions that help determine our

style and attitude towards fashion. Infamous celebrities such as Curt Cobain

and Marilyn Manson were famous for their unique style of clothing. They

inspired the public, that were interested in them as performers, how to show

their appreciation by imitating them.

On the left, is a picture of music

performer Marilyn Manson. He is

infamous for his unique appearance

that has inspired millions in terms of

fashion and attitude. His pale skin,

Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse

Page 5: Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

5

heavy make up and controversial clothing makes him a perfect example for

Ducasse’s essay.

It could be said that Manson only dresses like this to gain media attention and

to be remembered. Whether he dresses like this just to please himself is hard

to say, especially if this is what could disagree with Ducasse’s point of view.

Ducasse explains that how we dress ourselves reflects our personality;

Manson could just be dressing like this to just earn popularity and fame. His

fans for example, have imitated his look for decades but whether they actually

feel depressed and angry and society like Manson claims to be is very

doubtful.

A strong point that I believe can be agreed with Ducasse’s essay is that

people don’t necessary feel the way they style themselves.

Ducasse believes that we mask our true feelings by trying to fit into society

and to appear beautiful to our certain clique and friends. We try to impress

civilization by trying to camouflage and to fit in. As a society, we crave to feel

accepted and acknowledged.

After looking at the evolution of fashion, I do believe that Ducasse’s statement

that “Clothing is fundamentally for us today an ornamental mask”, is more

relevant than ever in society today. It is not only clothes that hide our true

point of views and beliefs: it is cosmetics, tattooing and plastic surgery. The

drastic extreme of permanently changing your appearance to feel secure

about yourself is extremely supportive of Ducasse’s point of view. The fact

Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse

Page 6: Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

6

that an individual is not happy about their appearance and feels that the only

way to feel complete is to change their appearance shows the drastic change

in perceptions of beauty and fashion.

Alexander McQueen designs

Another perfect example of how fashion is used as a disguise is celebrity

performer Lady Gaga. She is notorious for her outrageous costumes many

that were designed by the late designer Alexander McQueen. Many have

discussed whether her extreme outfits are just to help further her music career

or whether she is passionate about expressing her true beliefs through

fashion.

Another main point could be the fact that designers create the clothing to

compete for the most famous designs? It could be seen as a competition for

who can create the most unique and individual garments? Celebrities and the

Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse

Page 7: Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

7

cat walk promote these designs and society imitates these to “blend in”. The

common saying could be “If everyone else is wearing this, then why don’t

you?”

Perhaps society has become so self-conscious that no one dares to dress

how they truly want to.

To understand Ducasse’s point of view, I looked at his article chapter in “The

philosophy of the visual arts” by Phillip Anderson. On page 624, he describes

how perfume is designed to entice others by scents that represent beauty,

such as roses and fruit etc. He explained that “common food such as roast

beef because although a familiar smell, it only represents hunger and

swallowing”. There is nothing feminine or enticing like the scent of fresh

flowers. Another point Ducasse makes is how a man looks at himself in the

mirror, he is often displeased and unsatisfied by what he sees, so the only

option is to change this. For a perfect quote to explain the outline of

Ducasse’s point of view could be: “We are idealists trying to make up for

defects we discover in ourselves”.

The section entitled “self-adornment distinguished from self-edictal” explains

how although man kind relies on fashion, styling and cosmetics to appear

beautiful, you must not reveal to everyone that you are fake and not naturally

beautiful. You must give the illusion that you naturally have these features to

fit into society. Ducasse explains that the red of a woman’s lips must be

believable because “she is already naturally blessed with good looks”.

Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse

Page 8: Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

8

This is reinforced by many celebrities constantly denying that they have had

plastic surgery. They want to appear “naturally beautiful” without having to pay

someone to insert silicone in them to be seen as attractive and finally

feminine.

Ducasse quoted that “If you take away a man’s clothing, his usual settings

and his typical occupations,” everyone would look alike. “Whether they be a

rich man, poor man, beggar man or thief”.

Another example is when Ducasse explains that women often shave off their

eyebrows to be able to then draw them on again using eye liner or eye

shadow. This is to create a different shape brow to help frame the face better

and more proportionally. Beauty has often been described as being

achievable if all of the facial features are “symmetrical”. If the eyes, nose and

lips are proportional and are evenly shown on the face, then this is perceived

as true beauty.

The fact that man kind desperately tries to achieve this look by using plastic

surgery, fashion and imitating others, this shows that Ducasse’s theory of

fashion being a mask and disguise is more relevant than ever.

Another book that I researched was “Ideals and idols” by E.H Gombrich.

Although this book was not as helpful as others, it did help me understand the

importance of historical impact on art and fashion today. In the chapter “The

logic of vanity fair”, Paul Schilpp explains that how people like something is all

down to their acquired taste. The fact that there are many different fashion

designers shows that people prefer a difference in clothing including what

impression it gives off.

Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse

Page 9: Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

9

Another book I researched was “Eyes, lies and illusions”. This book is a

collection of art and fashion work that has more than one meaning to it. This

book helped me understand the deeper meaning if fashion and beauty as an

art form and how to interpret different meanings from an object. On page 64,

there is a large picture of a woman showing a boy a telescope. The next

image is where the lights are all turned off and you can see all creatures and

insects that the microscope did not show before. This book highlights the

saying “there is more than meets the eye”.

A perfect example of how beauty is interpreted is a picture by the artist

Stuggart of the wicked queen from the fairy tale Snow White. In the image,

you see two split pictures.

One of them shows the queen looking at herself and seeing her actual

unattractive appearance. The other mirror shows her looking and seeing a

beautiful version of herself. I think the key meaning from this art work, is how

vanity and beauty is perceived differently for others.

To help me understand more about societies constant obsession with

appearance and fashion, I looked at the book “A handbook of costume

drawing” by Georgia O’Daniel Baker. It focused on how men and women

should be drawn and how the body and face has certain angles and

proportion sizes.

This guide line could be seen as intimidating for certain people who do not

look the same as the proportional drawings. It also gave me an understanding

Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse

Page 10: Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

10

of how popular fashion has changed over the years. Such as the subject of

women having curves has often been in and out of fashion for decades.

The most useful book that helped me understand Ducasse’s point of view

about fashion and cosmetics being used as a disguise was “Fashion in make-

up from ancient to modern times” by Richard Corson.

“Usually women of fashion have always used make up surreptitiously with the

intent of deceiving, gradually seducing their less aggressive compatriots”.

My final example of how fashion and beauty can be a form in disguise is of

the most obvious transformations. Cheryl Cole is a perfect example of how

her appearance has furthered her career. She has often been described as a

“chav” and poor but because of the money she earns now, she is able to

afford stylists and expensive clothes, hair extensions and teeth veneers. This

means that because of the fashion and change of appearance, it has

inedibility changed how she was originally. From a “chav” to a prom princess,

Cheryl Cole, is one of many examples of how fashion can change and alter a

person’s real self.

Cheryl before fame After

Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse

Page 11: Theoretical Essay on Curt J. Ducasse

11

In conclusion to this essay, I believe that the media has turned fashion into a mask and

reference to what we see everyday. Clothing is often refered back to the televison or

films or celebrities from everyday life. As a society, we associate these types of

fashion styles with certain celebrties and cliques. We can disguise ourselves by

wearing certain fashion items to fit into a certain group of people. Such as wearing all

black, is associated as “gothic” and “emo”. I do agree with Ducasse’s quote and I

think that as a society we rely on appearance to change people’s original perceptions

of ourselves.

Reference List Bibliography

Websites: http://www.fashion-era.com/

www.digital history .uh.edu/do_ history / fashion

www.fibre2fashion.com

Books:The philosophy of the visual arts by Phillip Alperson. New York Oxford publishers 1992 Ducasse chapter

Ideals and idols by E.H Gombrich published by Phadion press 1979

Eye, lies and illusions, published by Hayward gallery 2004

A handbook of costume drawing, published by focus press 2000.

Fashion in make up from ancient o modern times by Richard Corson, published by Peter Owen publishers 1997.

The culture of fashion by Christopher Bresard published by Manchester university press 1994.

The glossary was used to help understand key terms. Pages 358-367

This helped me understand the whole of Ducasse’s essay and read his other views on fashion as a mask.

This helped me understand the historical side of change of opinion and taste.

I learnt about images having different meanings and how fashion creates that.

These last three books helped me understand the history of changing fashion trends and how it has an effect on societies perception of beauty.

Jade Leech Writing fashion and Culture Level 2 Sanda Miller Essay The art of personal beauty Curt J. Ducasse


Recommended