The world of fashion sees no bounds when we celebrate diversity and specific culture within the realm of style. Cultural fashion icons have created their own image of identity and belonging while paying tribute to their ancestral roots through their spectacular and unique fashion statements. From everyday casual styles to the most outlandish looks, these celebrities celebrate their heritage with pride and distinction. Through this article, we will explore the most iconic fashion moments that pay homage to the culture behind each individual and highlight a few celebrities who lead the trend!
1. The Rise of Heritage-Centric Fashion Trends
With the increasing interest in fashion from distant cultural roots, heritage-centric fashion trends are on a steep rise. Here’s what you need to know about the latest trend in fashion:
- Highly Customized: Through combining traditional elements from different cultures, such as traditional fabrics, techniques, and sewing styles, heritage-centric fashion offers an opportunity to create something that is customized and unique to your own individual style.
- Accessible to All: Heritage-centric fashion is available to everyone regardless of background or income level, making it easy to find on the high street or online.
- Experimental: People familiar with this trend are continuously experimenting with different elements, mixing and matching fabrics and colors to create eye-catching ensembles. It’s all about reclaiming and reinventing items from our past.
- Celebrating Identity: For many people, this trend is more than just a fashion statement. It’s about celebrating your cultural identity and heritage.
It’s easy to see why heritage-centric fashion is increasingly popular. With magazines, fashion blogs, and social media highlighting these styles, it’s easy to be inspired and to find a way to make it your own.
For instance, take a traditional Bolivian woven fabric and make it into a modern style skirt, with a printed tank top and statement jewelry. Or a vintage Gujarati sari could be transformed into a stylish dress for an evening out. As with any fashion trend, it’s all about adapting it to your personal style, and having fun while doing it!
Whether it’s African prints, Korean satin brocades, or Japanese kimonos, embracing heritage-centric fashion is a great way to make a statement and honor your heritage. So don’t wait any longer, join the trend and stand out from the crowd!
2. Famous Faces Celebrating Identity Through Style
It is no secret that fashion is a reflection of an individual’s personality and identity. Famous faces have been at the forefront of expressing their personalities through their style, inspiring others with their bold choices. The celebration of identity and self-expression is clear in the styles of certain celebrities.
- Gigi Hadid
- Billie Eilish
- Kendall Jenner
- Beyoncé
Gigi Hadid is a major trendsetter in the fashion world – she is never afraid to take a style risk and experiment with daring pieces. Her distinct loud and proud looks are often reflective of her strong personality. Her take on fashion has been featured in multiple campaigns, demonstrating her talent for combining her confidence and bold approach to fashion.
Billie Eilish has consistently surprised her audience with trend-breaking and inspiring fashion choices. From multicolored ensembles to unexpected statement looks, her personality shines through in her outfits. Her vibrant and unconventional approach to fashion has encourages many to be authentically themselves and true to their style.
Kendall Jenner is a master of stealthy, chic street-style. The supermodel rocks high fashion couture styles as well as off-duty looks, creating her own niche of sophisticated comfort and daring elegance. Her fashion sense has made her a globally-recognized figure, and injected a coolness factor to the industry.
Beyoncé is a celebrity leader in embracing her identity and culture through fashion. She unapologetically celebrates her heritage through her clothing choices, often wearing bright African fabrics and items with spiritual and cultural symbolism. Her style choices have paved the way for others to proudly express their identities with bold fashion statements.
Whether it is through making a statement, nuanced elegance, or proudly embracing personal identity, celebrities provide fashion inspiration for others to make their own style choices that most best reflect who they are. Their fashion choices motivate people to take more risks, to be inspired by others, and to feel good about themselves.
3. Cultural Icons Advocating for Representation
More and more, people are becoming aware of the importance of representation and its effect on society. This awareness has been spurred on by cultural icons standing up for what they believe in and advocating for equal representation in all areas of life. Here are some of the most influential icons who have spoken out on the issue of representation.
- Shonda Rhimes
Shonda Rhimes is the producer and creator of smash hit shows such as Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, and How to Get Away with Murder. In 2018, she made a powerful speech at the 2017 Human Rights Campaign Los Angeles Dinner in which she discussed the importance of representation and how it has been integral in pushing her shows to the forefront. She spoke of her own experiences as an African-American woman and how she feels responsible to “make sure that no child ever looks at a television show or a movie, and says: ‘That’s not me, that’s not my family, that’s not real.’”
- John Cho
John Cho is best know for his roles in projects such as the Harold and Kumar franchise and the Star Trek movies. In an ABC News Prime Time interview, he discussed how meaningful it was for Asian-Americans to see someone like him on screen, saying that “representation matters. It matters for young people to see themselves reflected.” He further expressed his support for the #StarringJohnCho social media campaign, which seeks to point out how much mainstream Hollywood is lacking in Asian-American roles.
- John Legend
Whether performing hits such as “All of Me,” “Love Me Now” or “Glory” or advocating for causes such as criminal justice reform, John Legend is one of the most recognizable public figures in the US. In November 2017, Legend spoke at the Forbes Women’s Summit, where he talked about the importance of representation in media, saying “The images we create in movies, in television, in music, in books, in art — these are the things that create our culture. We have to make sure we’re really pushing for people’s stories to get told.”
- Ryan Coogler
As an acclaimed film director, Ryan Coogler is well aware of the power of representation on the big screen. His works such as Black Panther and Fruitvale Station are works of art that are praised by viewers for their narrative and themes. In a 2018 interview with Remezcla, Coogler was asked why he felt it was important to include such a variety of people in his films. He replied “I’ve always felt that it is super important for people to be able to see themselves on the screen, not just in terms of race but also in terms of gender, age or sexuality.”
4. Exploring the Intersection of Fashion and Culture
Fashion and culture have a complex relationship, with the two intertwining in ways both subtle and overt. From Dolce & Gabbana’s runway shows featuring couture-clad models in traditional Sicilian garb to Angela Scott’s bespoke brogues featured in the 2019 film Captain Marvel, the ways in which fashion and culture are intertwined make for an ever-developing and dynamic exploration of art.
The Connecting Thread of History
The prevailing influence of culture in fashion is evident in the cyclical edges of fashion throughout history. From the flamboyant opulence of Victorian fashions to the introduction of the jeans as fashion staple in the 1950s, time and time again, culture has held steadfast as a primary factor in the creation of fashion.
Fashion and National Identity
From bold stripes and crisp color palettes to structured silhouettes and ornate details, the fundamental elements of fashion signify the many cultural and national identities. Clothing, shoes, and accessories not only offer a certain aesthetic beauty, but they also can signify a particular people or nation’s culture. For example, the traditional lao sinh, a type of traditional dress in Laos, is characterized by a vibrant handmade ikat fabric, intricate embroidery, and a floor-length wrap skirt. The details of the garment, passed down through generations, indicate its significance in the Lao culture.
The Language of Streetwear and Youth Culture
Streetwear is one of the most diverse and impactful forms of fashion that continues to grow in popularity. Through collaborations between high-end and streetwear brands, the cross-pollination of fashion ideas and trends become even more relevant and popular. The language of streetwear speaks to a younger demographic, providing a platform for a new wave of cultural expression. After all, what’s cooler than being able to support your favorite artist or designer with a t-shirt designed by them?
Fashion and Technology
As technology advances, so do fashion and culture, and the two are often intertwined with a growing intersection. For example, the forward thinking of futuristic fashion often mimics elements of our current society, particularly as it relates to technology. From light up clothes imagined in films such as Tron and Blade Runner to the creation of speaker dresses designed by Benjamin Cooper, the confluence of fashion and technology prove to be both fascinating and inventive.
Fashion and Pop Culture
Fashion and pop culture have an interesting relationship, each influencing the other through a combination of the two. It’s no secret that pop culture influences fashion, from the ever-popular athleisure of recent years to the sleek capes of superhero movies. Additionally, fashion has a significant impact on pop culture, as the evolution of fashion helps to create trends and norms that take shape in the modern day.
At the heart of this relationship is creativity, and whether subtle or blatantly obvious, culture and fashion remain inextricably linked, inspiring new and innovative ways of expressing art and self.
As we have seen, a cultural fashion icon is someone who celebrates and draws from their heritage for inspiration in unique and creative ways. From Paloma Elsesser to Dapper Dan to Bad Bunny, these self-expressive celebrities represent the beauty of diverse cultures and styles.
