Here we are, bidding farewell to another year. In 2022, industries across the board began cautiously returning to business as usual, and like every year, there were losses, gains, and controversies.
Vogue says that in 2022, “fashion was bigger, louder, and brighter than it’s been since the "Before Times” (aka the pre-Covid era), and here’s a throwback to the biggest moments in fashion this year.
In memoriam
It has been said that Issey Miyake was instrumental in elevating Japanese fashion to a world stage, and the loss of the first Japanese designer to show in Paris is one that was felt across the industry when he passed from liver cancer at the age of 84 in August.
Known for his pleated skirts, dresses and trousers that offered the wearer both flexibility of movement, as well as his origami-like designs, the designer also gifted the world of fashion the Bao Bao bag, Steve Jobs’ iconic black turtleneck, and L’eau d’Issey, a floral fragrance for women.
In January, former Vogue editor Andre Leon Talley died at the age of 73 from a heart attack.
Many may know him as a judge on America’s Next Top Model (he was on the panel from cycle 14 to cycle 17), but the fashion icon, known for supporting up-and-coming designers, was a fierce advocate for diversity in the fashion industry.
Read more: Style Recap 2022: Who are the celebrity rule breakers in fashion this year?
Talley, known for his trademark capes, kaftans and robes, withstood racism and homophobia his entire life and ascended to coveted positions such as Women’s Wear Daily’s Paris bureau chief and the first African-American male creative director and later editor-at-large at Vogue, and throughout his career opened doors for others.
Also in January, French fashion designer Thierry Mugler died of natural causes at 73, leaving behind his legacy of changing fashion with his eccentric, overblown designs in the 80s and 90s, when minimalism was on the rise.
He designed signature looks for Michael Jackson, Madonna, Grace Jones, David Bowie and Diana Ross, among others.
Mugler established his eponymous fashion house in the 1970s, and rose to prominence for his avant-garde, hyperfeminine and architectural approach to haute couture. He was also one of the first designers to champion diversity, incorporating drag queens, porn stars and transgender women in his shows.
Attention grabbing
Whether you love her or hate her (or are indifferent), Kim Kardashian is in our sphere and shows no sign of exiting stage left anytime soon.
Now, Kardashian has “broken the internet” several times and this was one of those moments, when she stepped onto the red carpet wearing Marilyn Monroe’s “Happy Birthday, Mr. President” dress, loaned from the Ripley’s Believe It Or Not Museum.
However you might feel about this whole bit of news, it’s something we can’t not include in the global fashion round-up, but let’s move on.
A far cry from the public’s response to Kardashian’s dress-squeezing (and allegedly, ripping) shenanigans, singer turned mogul Rihanna received high praise for her ground-breaking pregnancy style.
In true Rihanna fashion, she released the news with images that saw her wearing a pink vintage Chanel coat with elaborate jewellery adorning her pregnant belly.
At Paris Fashion Week, she graced the event wearing a baby doll Dior lace look, and for the next few months continued to redefine how pregnant women should dress and style themselves.
If ever there was a year for K-pop in fashion and luxury, it was 2022. The global girl group phenomenon known as Blackpink took the fashion, luxury and beauty industries by storm, landing endorsement deal after endorsement deal as they walked the world’s red carpets, dressed in designer.
Proof of their massive reach, Jisoo was ranked as the top influencer for Paris Fashion Week with the highest Earned Media Value (EMV) at US$659 mil (RM2.9 bil) (EMV is the monetary value of all exposure you gain on third-party sites or social media content through marketing and PR efforts – postbeyond.com).
Brands like Louis Vuitton, Dior, Chanel, Celine, Saint Laurent, Gucci, Tiffany & Co, Bulgari and plenty more have been engaging K-pop stars with a vengeance, including BTS, Aespa and Hyuna.
End of an era
Fashion itself is cyclical, but all things come to an end, even the good ones.
In November, after seven years at Gucci’s helm, Alessandro Michele stepped down as the brand’s creative director.
Apart from the revolutionary fashion codes, reviving and reinventing the classics and the seemingly endless flow of new products, his legacy extends beyond his impact on global style.
Michele, purveyor of gender-neutral fashion, blurred the lines between gender when he sent male models out in flouncy attire at the Gucci Men’s Autumn/Winter 2015 presentation, changing what constitutes feminine and masculine fashion.
Under Michele, Gucci decided to end the use of fur in all its collections, and has kept to its commitment to sustainability, including holding a carbon-neutral show in 2020 and the launch of the brand’s first eco-friendly collection.
The world of fashion also bore witness to the demise of another relationship, between rapper Kanye West and Adidas.
In October, the latter cut ties with West, a brand ambassador since 2016, who has fallen out of favour with several other brands thanks to his string of anti-Semitic remarks on social media and myriad of other controversies.
At the time of the announcement, the German sportswear brand said it was expecting a US$247 mil (RM1.09bil) hit to net income this year due to the break-up, and outside estimates peg the collaboration as responsible for as much as eight percent of the company’s revenue, said an article published in the South China Morning Post.
Read more: Style Recap 2022: What are the biggest fashion trends of the year?
Other news, and controversies
Instead of ending this round-up on a high note, we have saved the worst for last, as a cautionary tale to those in power and the higher-ups of any industry to keep themselves in check, and for the public to continue questioning and holding them accountable.
He may have given away his company (valued at RM13.6bil) to a trust in charge of ensuring the brand’s environmental values are respected, but has fashion retailer Patagonia’s Yvon Chouinard, done this purely out of the goodness of his heart and his love for mother Earth?
In September, Chouinard announced that he was transferring 98% of the family-owned company to a new non-profit, an advocacy group with a mission to “fight the environmental crisis, protect nature, biodiversity, and support thriving communities.”
As most of Patagonia’s shares will be transferred to a non-profit, Chouinard will not have to pay taxes on the gift, and the new structuring will allow him and his family to maintain control of the company.
According to businessinsider.com, “some experts say the structure Chouinard used to offload the company is helping the founding family of Patagonia 'opt out' of the tax system the rest of us are subject to – or at least those of us who aren’t billionaires”.
Yes, Patagonia’s profits will be used to make the world a better place, but the move was made in a way that benefits the family.
As long as you’re in the creative industry, there’s always the risk of being accused of plagiarism, and even brands like Ralph Lauren haven’t been spared.
In October, the fashion house was accused of copying Mexican designs by the wife of the country’s President, Beatriz Gutierrez, as well as the culture minister.
In a social media post, Gutierez (a writer and researcher), shared a picture of a garment which featured stripes and patterns sporting a Ralph Lauren label, hung in a store.
According to an article on bbc.com, she asserted that the brand was fond of designs inspired by indigenous textile traditions, but she added that copying these patterns was a matter of plagiarism, which she described as “illegal and immoral”.
She called for compensation for indigenous communities, saying that the particular item appropriated the design of garments worn by the Contla and Saltillo people.
Ralph Lauren apologised, saying it was “surprised” to see the garment in question still on sale, having issued a directive to remove it.
And finally, the month of November ended with a shocking controversy.
The gist of it is, Balenciaga’s recent advertising campaign has caused widespread outcry over allegedly condoning child exploitation.
First, the brand issued an apology that blamed the set designers and photographer, then filed a lawsuit against the campaign’s producers, which was then withdrawn.
Creative director Demna responded to the backlash with an apology on social media.
Some are saying this entire exercise is nothing more than “shockvertising”, as all major brands have a comprehensive approval process for ad campaigns, meaning this particular incident wasn’t a simple mistake.
Theconversation.com describes shockvertising as “an advert that deliberately, rather than inadvertently, startles and offends its audience by violating norms for social values and personal ideals”, naming Calvin Klein and Fcuk among the brands that have created ads resulting in free media coverage that benefited the brand and those associated with it.
What we need to ask ourselves is, even if this was Balenciaga’s intention, how far are they, or anyone else, willing to go? Unthinkable lines have been crossed, and humanity as a collective need to reassess our values system and what we are willing to compromise on.
And so, let’s end this roundup on a hopeful note, that media outlets and the public will continue to question, criticise, and raise hell when something isn’t right.
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