The aphorism I chose to observe from Christopher Breward’s foreword to Fashion Studies was, “Fashion is intensely personal, in the same way, that poetry is intensely personal. It is a medium through which personal stories can be told, memories re-lived and futures foretold.”

I chose to observe this particular aphorism, as it captures the essence of creating one’s individuality through a medium of choice. This is a key aspect within fashion, as well as fashion styling, as the individual wearing their clothes of choice sometimes consciously or even unconsciously creates an identity for themselves through the media chosen and put onto their bodies, ultimately forming the subjects fashion esthetic. This outside will then be observed by other individuals, generating a sense of identity and or stereotype which the person wearing the clothes most times does not have direct control over. Hence the choice of what one chooses to wear is incredibly personal at times, as depending on the degree of  ‘provocation potential’ of the items worn, impacts the level of vulnerability the specimen chooses to lay open. However, the degree of vulnerability is arguably in the eye of the beholder, as well as the individual wearing the media. Hence the aphorism is to most specimens, including myself agreeable.

Secondly, I took a closer look at this aphorism: “Fashion does not define. It is instead a term that demands definition”

Arguably this sentence is quite an ironic statement, as a rather large and demanding part of the fashion industry is dedicated to defining trends and analyzing what is ‘so hot right now’. Moreover, it also states what is not, ultimately creating a sense of fashion dictation within the free choice of what to wear, stimulating ‘fashion rebels’ and ‘trendsetters’ to go against this stream, hence generating provocation and forth taking the journey onto birthing a new trend that will again be dictated to others who do not feel the need to strive for the new, but instead follow what is currently apparent and ‘in style’. Hence this aphorism is both agreeable, as well as disagreeable, as fashion itself does not define because fashion is not a living breathing human with a brain which can make its own choices, however it is arguable whether fashion without the human being can even exist as it is the human who creates choices and hence fashion/outfits etc. So fashion does not define, the human creating the fashion does. However, hence fashion also does not ‘demand’ definition, it is the human wearing the media, and generating a corresponding market, that does so.