In an era when Time’s Up and the Trump presidency are two major narratives dominating the news cycle, the role of fashion, specifically red-carpet fashion, could either be diminished or amplified. Given that it is Oscar Week, the culmination of months of campaigning and wardrobe planning that leads up to Hollywood’s biggest night March 4, it is the latter. Those once-behind-the-curtain operators known as celebrity stylists now find themselves more in the spotlight, just as their Academy Award-nominated clients do.
That’s not a new story, it’s a cycle that’s been replayed over and over for decades now. What’s changed is the social and political climate now holding people in all industries accountable for actions ranging from sexual harassment to assault, and the entertainment industry’s unification as a means of affecting change.
The all-black dress code at the Golden Globes and the BAFTAs made a simple yet effective statement, and signaled that fashion, in ways big or small, can aid in amplifying larger movements. It can also rightly claim the spotlight purely on its own aesthetic merit, as we may see on Sunday. All of this generates millions of dollars in the industry, for the brands, the stars, their teams of agents and
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