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 About Style By Ann Turner
What is the difference between a fashion statement and a really serious mistake?
 A few days ago, police detained man in Tulsa because he was wearing handcuffs. The cuffs were clasped one to a wrist, the other cuff left dangling. The police checked for warrants and released the man. On the surface, this is just an odd incident. Had the man not been in the neighborhood of the courthouse, nobody would have questioned his status. Why? Because he was wearing Goth clothing. The cuffs were a statement of his style.
 The incident above gave me a chuckle, but not because the idea of handcuffs as a fashion accessory is new to me. Twenty years ago, I knew a woman who worked as a mediator in the county courthouse. She wore little dangly handcuff earrings to work with her “professional” tailored suits and provocatively low-cut tanks. It would have been safe to assume that this particular woman was looking for a certain kind of “love.” However, in retrospect, her little handcuff fashion statement could be open to other interpretations; particularly when one considers her venue of employment. Fashion is, above all, a potent form of nonverbal communication. Like the proverbial yell of “fire” in a crowded auditorium, some statements are better left alone.
 Another symbolic fashion statement I have known is the goat bell. I’m sharing this embarrassing story because I think it exemplifies a universal truth about a function of fashion and the nature of teens. When I was about fifteen or sixteen, my friends and I acquired some goat herd’s bells, which had been crafted from tin cans in a third-world country. As presumptive artists, we ascribed messages to the sounds of these bells, and wore them around our necks to “spread the word.” Imagine the reverent silence of MOMA (New York’s Museum of Modern Art), shattered by the discordant clank of these very unmusical bells. Surely, the museum docents shuddered when they saw us coming. Furthermore, we made it our practice to visit this shrine to our holy artistic ideals at least once a month. Our message was not very coherent back then, but it involved drawing attention to the plight of people in third-world countries that were/are oppressed by western culture. Over time, we took out some of the clackers because we were being thrown out of too many places we wanted to go. I still have a rusty tin bell, and the clank is still annoying. Also, it is still an interesting ornament. I guess that we were just playing out our roles as teen-agers back then, but my friends and I thought we were saying something that people would care about if they would just pay attention. As we matured, we came to understand that adults don’t pay attention because knowledge is often inconvenient. Over time, we discovered other ways to get our messages across to the resistant masses, such as Guerilla Theater, stenciled messages spray-painted in crosswalks, journalism, etc. After all, Fashion is just one of many art forms to an artist.
Like our bells, many contemporary fashion statements are generated from political opinion or strong feeling. Unlike our bells, some trends catch on. The Red campaign in support of Global Fund programs for HIV/AIDS prevention, care & treatment in Africa is an example of political activism through fashion. The rejection by consumers of blood diamonds and the burgeoning popularity of fair trade garments, embellishments, and handcrafted products are other strong examples in the fashionable public eye now. Though I cannot foresee any embarrassment over my support of causes like this, in general it is a good thing that we can remove the clackers and unlock the cuffs on most of our statements when the motivation wanes. Some fads in the guise of “fashion statements” are more difficult to contend with, however. A bad haircut takes months to grow out, and dye or an unsightly perm is better left alone for at least a few weeks, no matter how unflattering that neon pink bozo ‘do is! Instant tanning skin products that have run amok are more of an embarrassment than a serious disfigurement, and the orange skin effect can be minimized until it wears off. Embarrassing T-shirts have myriad lives beyond public display, and jewelry can be passed along, recycled, or sometimes just sent to the bottom of a drawer.
 On the other hand, tattoos are in a completely different category and are not in any real sense fashion statements. Tats cannot be true fashion statements because they last far longer than any fad or style. Though they are fashionable among teens, their enduring nature says that they are something more. Tattoos are a lasting commitment to a momentary or impulsive idea or value. One does not need to hear tired tales of drunken sailors on shore leave, or horror stories of penitentiary survival to know that skin marking has lasting and often embarrassing or harmful implications.
Remember the 8 Track?
There are many intelligent, thoughtful and tasteful adults with a myriad of remarkable and admirable Art expressions in ink on their skin. I am explicitly not talking to or about these people. I am referring to the desecration of unsupervised children who lack the mature judgment to make the decision to defile their bodies with essentially permanent and often antisocial images and messages. Children are in essence marking themselves for life with adolescent ideas. Can you visualize your 8th grade boyfriend’s name, “It’s Hammer time”, or the name of your favorite ball team ANYWHERE on your body today? I doubt it.
 Now, I am an ardent admirer of good ink and I like the idea of portability and the life that underlies the image. . My Anthropologist’s heart beats a little faster at the sight of some of the incredible black graphic skin Art from the South Pacific. A tattoo is one of the few truly creative expressions that you CAN take with you! It can be a beautiful and creative reflection of personal style. Traditional tattoos are about mature design and image. Tribal, naturalistic, and symbolic motifs reveal whom a person is, where they have been, and even their rank within a culture. These personal qualities are as enduring as the images themselves. I love the medium and I admire the artistry when adults choose to adorn themselves with it. However, I have yet to see a truly artistic piece on a teen. I have seen artist-in training practice pieces, gang initiation pieces, and even a few incompetent amateur pieces, but no true art demonstrating skill or virtuosity. To those unscrupulous skin vandals, I say PRACTICE ON PIG SKIN, DUMMY! LEAVE THE KIDS ALONE!
Today, Tats are often commissioned by teens with less deliberation than the acquisition of a stylish accessory. From an analytical perspective, it seems like its really about power. Kids want to prove to themselves and others, that they are in control. The funny thing is, they are becoming less so all the time. Some kids are so out of control that they don’t even go to school any more. They refuse to learn or even think unless it is about something important to them. That may be a lifestyle, but in the end, it is not much of a life. This goes back to the fact that children make childish choices. Teens are loudly proclaiming their alienation from the generations that came before them and their parents are looking away.
 Teens are like a temporary tribe. . Once skin is marked, is very difficult to transcend the message that the marks convey or refute an affiliation they imply. As a group, adolescents neither think about tomorrow nor realize that their point of view is likely to change drastically as they mature. They think that they will remain as they are, forever. Teens mark their skin because they can and because they presume it is their right. Why do they think that? Because their friends told them, of course. They explicitly misunderstand that Fashion is ephemeral and tattoos are not. Ink may be art, but tats fail the test of fashion. They do not go away at the end of the season.
In a very real sense, fashion has let today’s teens down. It has not directed them toward the fun and different alternative styles or the quirkier aspects of society. Fashion has not created a safe haven for teens to try out new and original ideas within the collective support of their society of peers. Fashion has not offered today’s adolescents the latitude to experiment with who they are and how to represent themselves. If fashion reflects who we are and what we value, what does that tell you about our future? No wonder we’re seeing all that sci-fi stuff in the stores. Tattoo, one of the oldest forms of human bodily adornment, has taken on the role of anti-fashion. . As to the rest, how about some smart aesthetician developing durable airbrush tattoos that wear off over a 6-month period? Only your artist  knows for sure. Now THAT would be a legitimate fashion statement. Its ephemeral.
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