Feather Brained

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I'm notoriously crap at answering those formulaic fashion/style questions that get thrown at me on a daily basis.  "What's the one item you would never wear?"  I always facetiously answer with "Well, actually there aren't that many things that I wouldn't wear‚Ķ"  In actual fact, that's not true.  It finally dawned on me at the Junya Watanabe show that a feathered headdress is something that I absolutely would not touch with a bargepole.  I'm talking about the sort that grace countless girls in denim cut-off shorts, slogan tees and ironic war paint on their faces at festivals such as Coachella.  They can be as simple as a headband with a simple splay of feathers or a full-on headdress that is just about the worse thing you can don as a way of mis-appropriating native American culture.  

At the Watanabe show though, I was simultaneously struck by how much I hated feather headdresses and headbands but then backtracking as I watched this particular "tribe" stomp out in faux suede fringing and beading, a messy head of dreads, art gallerist homespun jewellery and yes, a head full of feathers.  They looked glorious, majestic and incredibly evocative.  Watanabe faced naff exotica and the all things "tribal" head-on.  They didn't feel like a cringing misappropriation.  These pheasant feathers that fluttered in all directions as though they naturally sprouted from the head was a visceral expression of globe trotting – a journey that went on in Watanabe's head that didn't deliberately try to evoke Africana/tribal/ethnic/any other word that often peppers these sorts of collections.  Unlike the "Oh-so-rad" feathered specimens that one might find atop of countless heads at a festival.  

Perhaps it's the scale that was most impressive.  These feathers spanned over a metre in length in some cases and almost looked predatory as they bounced up and down in motion.  Their naturalistic vastness also made them beautiful.  I knew there'd always be exceptions to the rule and I'm mighty glad that exception has fallen upon Junya Watanabe.  I can now answer that initial question with confidence.   "I kind of hate feathered headdresses.  Unless Junya Watanabe had a hand in them."  

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21 comments

  4. Not only do I dislike anything tribal (on myself, not on others necessarily, and I am also not against ‘ethnic’ influences, just agains the abuse of them), but I’ve had a certain dislike for the fringed t-shirt tassels (I don’t really know how to call those) ever since I was 4 or 5, and my mom made me wear one of those t-shirts to the beach. Yet somehow this collection could not be more fabulous – such a simple idea, blended into the collection so thoroughly, with the final result being a bunch of beautiful, absolutely wearable pieces instead of, well, beach t-shirts for grumpy children being told what to wear by their mothers :). And the hair was just the perfect final touch for me, given my love for hairstyles resembling a big chaotic mess.
    Oh, and no disrespect towards feathers. Feathers in the hair can be nice, sometimes 🙂

  9. A modern interpretation of Grecian clothing (including the hairdo) combined with tribal elements. Not sure I get it but it’s very now judging by the revival of classical antiquity drama we currently have on TV screens.

  14. Those are terrifying. Maybe I am scarred by the Avian Flu from living in HK as I shudder from anything plume-y near me.

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