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Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=rfft20 Fashion Theory The Journal of Dress, Body and Culture ISSN: 1362-704X (Print) 1751-7419 (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rfft20 Dressed in History: Retro Styles and the Construction of Authenticity in Youth Culture Heike Jenß To cite this article: Heike Jenß (2004) Dressed in History: Retro Styles and the Construction of Authenticity in Youth Culture, Fashion Theory, 8:4, 387-403, DOI: 10.2752/136270404778051591 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.2752/136270404778051591 Published online: 01 May 2015. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 2222 View related articles Citing articles: 9 View citing articles 387 Dressed in History Fashion Theory, Volume 8, Issue 4, pp. 387–404 Reprints available directly from the Publishers. Photocopying permitted by licence only. © 2004 Berg. Heike Jenß Heike Jenß is a PhD candidate in the interdisciplinary research project “Uniforms in Motion: The Process of Uniformity in Body and Dress” at the Institute of Cultural History of Textiles at Dortmund University, Germany. Her thesis focuses on retro styles and consumption in the contemporary Sixties scene. Dressed in History: Retro Styles and the Construction of Authenticity in Youth Culture Although the concept of authenticity has been challenged as a useful explanatory tool in cultural analysis, it is clear that a tag of authenticity is a powerful force in selling goods. Not only does authenticity refer to new and original objects and themes but also to the re-creation or revival of objects and motifs from the past. Indeed, Mark Jones has argued that the concern for authenticity has grown with the passion for revivalism (Jones 1992: 7). This phenomenon is especially noticeable in the desire for authenticity in fashion. But what is the link between authenticity and the reproduction and appropriation of former styles? And what are the connotations of authenticity in the context of body and dress? 388 Heike Jenß Based on ethnographic research among members of the Sixties scene in Germany, this article1 investigates the dress practices involved in the construction of an authentic retro style. The key question posed is: in what ways are body and dress charged with the meaning of authenticity—and how does authenticity in the world of objects relate to the subject? This analysis of the Sixties scene and of the commercialization of authenticity among the brands Retrofame and adidas will show that authenticity is neither an immanent feature of objects nor of identity, but a matter of negotiation of the cultural actors. Authenticity is especially important to young people and is used as a tool in constructing identities through consumer behavior. The authen- ticity of consumer articles and brands is guaranteed through certificates like “genuine article” or “authentic style” printed on the labels of clothing such as jeans and trainers. One company that actively promotes authen- ticity in its product lines is the German sportswear brand adidas. The company has realized a global store concept, selling remakes of adidas originals, that are particularly targeted at the young, knowledgeable consumer who has a passion for the “real thing”—even if reproduced. In a similar strategy, the Vienna-based company Retrofame has incorpor- ated the trade in secondhand clothing into a vintage brand concept and invents a personality for each shirt they resell. By contrast to consumers of retro styles in the high street, retro groups like the contemporary Sixties scene immerse themselves in a re-creation of the authenticity of the period. They wear original Sixties clothes as part of an entire “Sixties-like” lifestyle, re-performing the historic look comple- mented by matching accessories, hairstyles, and makeup. Performing History: The Sixties Scene In contrast to a “carnivalesque” mode of appropriating retro dress, as defined by Gregson et al. (2001) Sixties enthusiasts perform their period style not only on special occasions like Sixties parties but on an everyday basis. In their cultural practices they generate a lifestyle that is completely dedicated to the mythic 1960s. The age of participants ranges from sixteen to people in their thirties, all of whom come from middle-class back- grounds, and many of whom are students. Wearing either original clothes from the Sixties or self-made garments modeled on old patterns, their dress and body performance aims to reconstruct an “authentic” Sixties style. The original point of reference for the Sixties scene is the British mods of the 1960s (see Hebdige 1974). The current scene has evolved from the revivals of mod style during the 1970s and 1980s that have spread the style on a broader international scale (see Lentz 2002; Rawlings 2000). To this end, participants search out distinctive elements of the Sixties style and period that have particular appeal, and focus on those clothes 389 Dressed in History and looks quite strategically. In other words, there is not a single Sixties style that is being followed slavishly but a range of options and styles that are retrospectively associated with the time, such as pop- and op-art fashions as well as psychedelic and hippie styles from the latter half of the 1960s. Participants acquire their knowledge of the Sixties from interaction and involvement with other scene members, consumption practices and en- gagement with the visual and material culture of the 1960s, through movies, record covers, fashion magazines, and original artifacts like Figure 1 Sixties stylist 2004, wearing a reproduction of an op-art dress in 1960s style and reproduction boots. Both bought secondhand via ebay America. Handbag is originally from the 1960s, bought on flea market. Photo: Horst Dieter Schenk. 390 Heike Jenß secondhand dress (Jenß 2004b). Such dedicated absorption of the feel of the period through its surviving traces is essential for the production of a “credible” retro appearance and the demonstration of knowledge and connoisseurship as part of their (sub)cultural capital (Bourdieu 1992; Miles 1996; Thornton 1995). Their retro looks are convincing in their re-creation of Sixties fashion, not only through their clothes but also in their attention to accessories, makeup, hairstyles, dance, and body pos- ture. This quest for authenticity through reproduction is a central preoccu- pation of members of this scene, and essential for their individual and collective identification with the look of the past. To practice “authentic style,” members shop for originals that are imbued with special values and the essence of the Sixties as collectors’ items and living treasures (Pomian 1987: 50). In “Western traditions, objects serve memory [. . .] they constitute our picture of the past” (Kwint 1999: 2). Sixties items are appreciated not only because they are no longer mass-produced objects but because they have become rare—even unique —and are worn by nobody else. They are past in the present, hence a tool to imagine history in the contemporary context (Korff and Roth 1990; Kwint 1999). As material survivals they are original witnesses of cultural history, enabling Sixties enthusiasts literally to get “in touch” with the idealized decade. However, as it becomes more difficult to acquire original pieces, not all dress worn in the Sixties scene is in fact authentic. Despite disdain for the poor quality of contemporary mass-produced fashion, many Sixties stylists purchase new clothes in a Sixties style, like plain shirts or hipster pants. These mass products are individualized and given an “authentic” Sixties feel by altering the garments or combining them with iconic Sixties dress (see Jenß 2004b). The process of customizing new mass-produced Sixties attire is not only important for constructing uniqueness, but also as a way to make these things fit their “Sixties dress only” attitude, for example, by hiding the newness of these objects. As the mass market does not produce Sixties retro garments each season, Sixties stylists also sew their own clothes or commission them. Self-made Sixties garments are based on original patterns. To achieve the effect of an “original,” Sixties stylists pay a lot attention to the choice of fabric since this influences the shape of a garment and overall look. Having “the right cut is one thing, but the right material is a must” (Barrell 2002). New reproductions of 1960s fabrics are generally avoided, “as they are usually slightly off the mark and often seem so obviously like reproduc- tions” (Barrell 2002). These quotations from a Sixties website show the attention to detail that goes into constructing a convincing and “auth- entic” retro appearance. Such micro-management is invested not only in fashioning the body, but in the entire material culture of everyday life, including the choice of cars and interior furnishings. Living in a matching home, decorated with Sixties furniture, the self-created Sixties world is a product of complete immersion into the style. It opens up an imaginary 391 Dressed in History time travel, technically realized through the interconnection of dress and space (see Jenß 2004b). Consuming “the authentic,” or producing homemade originals, differ- entiates Sixties stylists from the so-called mainstream or mass. But in contrast to the usual ascription of retro practices as “different” or “unique,” Sixties style integrates individuals into a network of like-minded people—with whom they communicate their shared interests (see Hitzler et al. 2001: 20). As the following quote shows, within the collective performance of uploads/s3/ dressed-in-history-retro-styles-and-the-construction-of-authenticity-in-youth-culture.pdf