Fashion Historia

New Club Kids: London Party Fashion in the Noughties By Oggy Yordanov, Prestel (May 2011)

This petite photo book (about the size of a postcard) provides visual documentation of a select group of club kids in London between 2001 and September 2010. Six small pages of text provide an introduction to a very specific scene. Those pages consist of an introduction by the photographer/author and former (current?) Club Kid Oggy Yordanov, followed by a very brief interview with “Princess Julia” a London DJ and the Music editor for i-D Magazine.

Leigh Bowery, via the Reblog.

Oggy and Princess Julia discuss the role that Boy George’s London Musical “Taboo” had on the club scene (notably, educating the youth on the musical trends and fashion traditions of the New Romantics), and more specifically the impact that Leigh Bowery and the film Party Monster had on their image creation. Oggy provides particulars about specific clubs in the 2000s, while the interview with Princess Julia provides more context for the 2000s version of club kids in comparison to the New Romantics.

The remaining pages are full-color images of  ‘noughties’ club kids – and it must be said that their dress is not nearly as outlandish as those of previous decades. As a resource for academic researchers of historical fashion, it is not particularly informative. Captions are small and only include dates and venues, but no names of individuals or context on what they are wearing. While some are entertaining, most leave me feeling like I’m looking at Facebook photos of someone’s night out (But perhaps my proximity to San Francisco’s club scene has tainted my view). Though this is not my area of expertise, I have to say I was not impressed either with photography, or with the clothes depicted. Neither seemed that inspired, and I had a hard time remaining interested (especially after schooling myself in their inspirations from the 1980s). Perhaps Lady Gaga’s outlandish outfits have desensitized me.

That said, the book could be useful for costume designers (current and future) looking to reproduce the look of London club kids post 2001, or collections containing relevant fashion (I’d love to hear what collections have them!). Of course, I certainly don’t intend to have the last word. Have a look at some of the photos yourself (below) and let me know what you think: