Yves Saint Laurent died in June firmly established as an icon in fashion design. The August issue of Vogue includes a tribute to him and quotes him as having said "Without elegance of the heart, there is no elegance."I love this quote and I cannot deny that I love fashion. I love observing it, reading about it, shopping for it and wearing it. There, I wrote it.
The industry of fashion, at least the leading edge of it, undeniably promotes superficial beauty and glamour, extravagance, the further obsession with celebrity and "who they are wearing", unhealthy body images and a compulsion to own "it" brands and labels. It's difficult to reconcile all of that with living a spirit centered life, but I'm always looking for ways. Here are some of my current justifications, I mean, thoughts:
Fashion design is an art form and, as such, its
underlying impulse is an expression of spirit. The clothes we choose to wear are one way to represent who we are to the rest of the world. They certainly don't define us, but they can say a lot about us, how we feel about ourselves and our orientation to life. My mood and my outlook on the day can be significantly bolstered when I wear something that fits me just right, literally and figuratively. I believe, like everything else in the physical world, it comes down to how much importance we place on it. There is a big difference between appreciating something and worshiping it. Have we confused who we are with what we are wearing or carrying? If so, recognizing it and tipping the scales back in the other direction can bring us into balance and grounded in the memory that who we really are is one big happy naked spirit.
Photograph of Yves Saint Laurent
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