Flavorfull #013

the digital cup hath spilleth over with choice

I recently had a stress dream (while taking a nap procrastinating writing this exact piece) that I was attending a fashion talk led by a panel of prominent industry professionals and during the Q&A I was told I was barred from asking anymore questions ever again! I wonder what it all means.

Books I’ve recently read and enjoyed: Trieste, Daša Drndić; Stoner, John Williams; Old Masters, Thomas Bernhard (said to be one of the inspirations for Malina, which I mentioned in the previous issue)

---

Microtrends as a pastiche of subculture.

If there’s anything that fashion writers have been unable to resist speaking about in the last 6 months, it is the rise of the concept of microtrends. Or perhaps it’s more accurate to clarify that there has been a rise of the term microtrends. There had never previously been such a coinable term to latch onto the natural concept of differing tastes and interests, but with its inception, it has set the industry on fire. Arguments for microtrends, arguments against microtrends all arguing via subjective approaches to the industry at hand. . . but it is undeniable that the ‘X-core’ or ‘X-aesthetic’ format is what’s gripping fashion writing in this very moment despite the opinions of more seasoned fashion journalists.

Alyssa Lyanne on YouTube

This devolvement is not really the fault of the younger generation trying to get into the fashion industry when the traditional media outlets, run by the more seasoned people in the industry, see value strictly in links and marketing, so that is simply what is being asked of today’s younger writers. However, with the rise of digital access into previously unseen spaces, and even the ‘eventual’ rise of the metaverse, writing about fashion or culture now requires much less ‘on the ground’ information and reporting than it once may have. Digital content is represented by single-use articles that are expected at an unreasonable quantity per day to monitor engagement statistics and maximize advertising profits. The entire state of modern writing is merely a snake eating its own tail.