As a book-obsessed teenager, I devoured Evelyn Waugh, F Scott Fitzgerald, and the darkly fantastical worlds of Raymond Chandler, convinced that literary taste could shape a persona. Unfortunately, my reality was far less cinematic, and I managed to acquire only a single friend who had similar literary tastes as mine to discuss these books with.
However, when I was about to begin university, I was determined to embody my imagined life. I created a Dark Academia Pinterest board and pieced together a wardrobe that felt appropriately dramatic. I channelled a mix of Waugh’s elegant heroines, Miller’s Parisian outcasts and Carter’s femme fatales from the ’70s.
On Mondays I wore bow blouses tucked into tweed skirts. Tuesdays were for bright silk scarves, leather belts, and my pièce de résistance – a long, sheepskin coat – to indulge in the extravagant fur my fantasy required. On Wednesdays, I wore black eyeliner, a crimson leather jacket, and brown platforms. I envisioned myself as the kind of woman who took her coffee black, her scotch straight, and spent nights discussing art and listening to jazz with friends.
In retrospect, a lot of my outfits were questionable, indefensible even. By the end of my first year at St Andrews, these phases faded. But the habits that mattered – the reading, the dressing up, the belief that books could shape a life – those stayed. As a literature student, studying the Gothic, Romantic, and Decadent movements in their wider contexts deepened my understanding and altered my perspective on my style.
Unsurprisingly, I soon grew bored of basically cosplaying characters and aesthetics. I wanted to discover my own, original, personality, not steal it from others. I began to look at the convergence of art and fashion through a different lens, appreciating the way fashion could also convey the thematic aspects of literature and craft narratives. Divesting clothes from their performativity and artifice, I became interested in investigation selfhood and expression.
Time and again, fashion designers have turned to writers to imbue their collections with more perspective and depth. William Blake’s legacy - romantic imagery, symbolism, celebration of individuality - has sparked the imagination of countless designers, creating fashion that transcends the boundaries of art.
Maharishi’s Spring/Summer 2019 collection, for instance, was deeply influenced by Blake’s The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, translating Blake’s vision of the interplay of two different concepts. This contrast was conveyed through designs that reimagined militarised garments using delicate embroidery and Eastern silhouettes.
Likewise, Sarah Burton took inspiration from Blake’s visual imagery in the Alexander McQueen Spring/Summer 2022 Menswear show, playing on his themes of escapism and engagement with the sublime. The collection encapsulated the Romantic Period by communicating the idea of light emerging from darkness through bold prints and avant-garde silhouettes, creating a whimsical yet spiritual mood.
Valentino took a distinct approach, opting to weave snippets of poetry directly into the fabric of its designs rather than merely drawing upon a poet’s archetypes or allegorical motifs. 2019’s Autumn/Winter show Valentino on Love illustrated the theme of love profoundly as the show opened with striking visuals: prints of blood-red roses, entwined lovers, and poetic text adorning fluid silk dresses, structured blazers, and weightless skirts. By subtly embedding text where one might expect graphic logos or prints, the collection balanced modernity with timeless sentiment. A booklet of poems entitled On Love, a compilation of works by Greta Bellamacina, Mustafa the Poet, Yrsa Daley-Ward and Robert Montgomery placed on each seat – highlighted the romance of the clothes and the ethos of freedom of imagination at the Roman fashion house.
Fashion is not just a way of communicating to the world that “I am an intellectual.” It’s personal, intimate and can serve as a medium for the exploration of inner truths. The whimsy of fashion and literature lie in their ability to make us feel something. Use your imagination! Look at the way great writers cultivate a timeless presence and let there be intention and artistry behind your clothing decisions. Choose pieces that tell the world who you are, how you feel, and who you wish to become.
Treat yourself like a canvas. Be art of your own.
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