“The reality is that a good portion of the culture has become loudly vocal about how clothes don’t matter and how it’s snobbish or shallow to suggest that they do. But clothes are part of our broader aesthetic obligation to each other. That commitment pushes homeowners to mow their lawns and not be a blight to the neighborhood. It makes them think twice before painting their houses in psychedelic stripes. The desire to be aesthetically respectful means guests give consideration to what they wear to a friend’s wedding or mourners take care in how they dress for a loved one’s funeral.”
— Robin Givhan, Fashion Editor of The Washington Post, the first fashion writer to win a Pulitzer Prize (via The Washington Post)
“I wonder what it will take to convince the non-believers, the skeptics that it matters? Would it convince them if designers stopped putting on fashion shows and instead presented their collections in the dull, fluorescent light of a convention center? Do more fashion companies need to go public so that Wall Street becomes more of a stakeholder? Do designers need to march on Washington for copyright protections? What will convince folks that a billion dollar industry is relevant?”
— Robin Givhan, Fashion Editor of The Washington Post, the first fashion writer to win a Pulitzer Prize (via robingivhan.com)
“Ever since I began writing about fashion, oh so many years ago, I’ve had my own love/hate affair with it. It can be frustratingly silly. But every now and then, something substantial happens. Some fashion show - like a recent Comme des Garcons one — speaks volumes about how we relate to the homeless and to poverty. Or some fashion business - like Gucci - becomes a marvel of acumen and innovation.”
— Robin Givhan, Fashion Editor of The Washington Post, the first fashion writer to win a Pulitzer Prize (via robingivhan.com)
“I understand. It’s all about the clicks. It’s all about resources. But somehow fashion is neither fish nor fowl. It’s not considered “arts” and it’s not politics. I fret that soon it won’t be considered. It’s not the most important thing in the world, certainly. But it does tell us a lot about who we are as a society in the same way that great architecture, music and art do. People seem to automatically understand the relevance of those other fields. But it’s always a struggle to convince them that the same is true for fashion.”
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Robin Givhan, Fashion Editor of The Washington Post, the first fashion writer to win a Pulitzer Prize (via robingivhan.com)
I admire this woman so much. She represents everything I aspire to be. She graduated from Princeton, earned a master’s in journalism, and worked for several top newspapers — in addition to VOGUE.
