Reaganomics dominated the US in the 1980s, while Thatcherism dominated the UK during the same decade. As Generation X reached adulthood, TV debuted artists such as Madonna and Prince. In the midst of strikes and public demonstrations, Wall Street’s catchphrase from the film “Greed is Good” became a hymn for consumerism. And in Dynasty, Joan Collins’ shoulder pads grew larger and larger.
The Frankie Goes to Hollywood singer Holly Johnson remembers in the book Outlaws what he would like to wear out clubbing.
The book is related to a current show at the Fashion and Textile Museum in London called Outlaws: Fashion Renegades of Leigh Bowery’s 1980s London. Johnson is only one of the people who can still remember the fashions, sounds, and shenanigans of the past. The program follows the life and career of Leigh Bowery, the Australian-born performance artist, style icon, and fashion designer who moved to London in 1980 and quickly made himself the center of the party thanks to his outrageously creative attire and fantastic makeup. The counterculture that gave rise to Bowery, which was home to “fashion renegades” including designers John Galliano, Pam Hogg, Wayne Hemingway, Stephen Linard, BodyMap, and Rachel Auburn, is also covered in the exhibition.
