Escaping the Matrix
In my hand I hold two capsules. One red, one blue. Same size, same taste, identical save for the color. As you progress further through this piece of writing I will offer you a choice between the two capsules. At the end of the article, I will ask you to make a choice. I’ll never know if you make the choice or not, but humor me a little. Before and as you read, I also encourage you to take either physical or mental inventory of two things: the contents of your closet and the world as it exists both to you and on a large scale. Two huge asks, I know, but again I’m asking for humor. I’ll also make a disclaimer as one final note before we dive in: if the styles and trends I will be discussing in this article can be found in your daily wardrobe, I mean no amount of ill will towards you, you probably look very chic, this is just one little magazine’s opinion.
In the instance that you have parents who didn’t raise you properly or you grew up deep in the Alaskan woods and are not familiar with the premise of the 1999 blockbuster dystopian sci-fi hit movie The Matrix, I’ll elaborate. First of all, go watch it right now, it’s an incredible piece of media. Second, it follows a very handsome Keanu Reeves as he navigates the ‘Matrix’ – a world created and ruled by a dominant race of self-aware machines that closely mirrors the world we are all familiar with. Neo, played by Reeves, sort of stumbles upon The Matrix through his computer hacking escapades, and learns of a massive war taking place and there’s hot girls in bodycon suits and fighting and kissing and heroes and villains and and and.
The film’s relation to this article, you ask? Upon its release, the film had a tremendous impact on the world of fashion, and since all things are cyclical, over the past five years or so, what I’ll call Matrix-core has begun dominating fashion both of high design houses and young people alike once again. The prevailing themes of Matrix-core fashion can be described best as black and sleek. A drinking game in which you take a shot every time a character is wearing a black trench coat with a skin-tight black top and artfully belted black pants, topped off with tiny sunglasses would result in a blackout before the film reached its halfway mark. The trend was fun at first, as most trends are, and not unlike most trends, it quickly became oversaturated. What once felt like a niche nod to a 90s sci-fi film quickly resulted in ushering in an age of avant-minimalism that backed fashion into a bit of a boring rut.
If you have spent more than three minutes on any ‘fashion-conscious’ part of the internet, or have spent any amount of time in downtown
Left: Top by ISLEUX. Middle: Outfit by Chloe Gulsvig Website/Instagram. Right: Flower piece by Youyang Li
Manhattan, you can probably conjure a mental image of what I’m describing with no trouble. Hordes of very chic, vaguely European-looking young people donning black trench coats and Balenciaga BB0157s (dupes or the real deal) looking vaguely like a gaggle of Dementors stalk the streets almost looking like a nunnery took a field trip. I am an enormous proponent of people dressing themselves in any way they’d like, however, it should be noted that although the trend cycle has always moved, well, cyclically, it has been expedited tenfold by online echo chambers. What first started as every year shortly became every six months, and what was six months turned into three turned into one until we reach now: when a new aesthetic identity is insisted upon at such a rapid rate that people cannot possibly keep up. I could talk for hours about how this leads to the increasing pressure to always be re-branding and commodifying oneself based on what is trending, but I’ll digress for now. The problem with these trends is not necessarily the trends themselves, but the damage they have done to the notion of personal style. A world dominated by micro-trends and identities that allow somebody to align themselves with the current ‘cool crowd’ discourages people from venturing out and discovering what makes them feel the best; not to mention the excessive clothing waste this creates, but again, digressing for now.
When observing this particular trend, one can’t help but notice how eerily similar it seems to the world at present. Does it not make sense that an aesthetic trend based on a movie about a world collapsing finds prominence in a world that is, in fact, collapsing? Our world feels more and more dystopian and unfamiliar every day, so embracing minimalist and utilitarian themes in fashion as a sort of coping mechanism for that tracks pretty hard. But have we not had enough nihilism, enough hopeless despair? What of the indomitable human spirit, what of the urge to find meaning in a meaningless world? I would argue that we should all be more inclined to cope through color and creativity and truthfulness to ourselves and to others. The world is spinning beyond our control, why not wear what you feel suits you best? Your adherence to the internet’s favorite monthly microtrend won’t matter much during the apocalypse, so go crazy! Of course if this style speaks to you, run with it until you are blue in the face, don’t listen to me.
However, as previously mentioned at the start of this article, I will be asking you to make a decision with yourself. Keep in mind that no one here is fashion shaming you, I wouldn’t dream of it. I only hope to encourage you to do some reflecting. Do you find yourself constantly buying new clothes, only to have them feel outdated and tacky after two months? Do you have one or seven influencers who you look to be told what’s cool to wear right now? If TikTok vanished off the face of the planet tomorrow, would you be able to dictate what you like and dislike, stylistically speaking? If you answered yes to either of the first two questions, or found yourself uncertain about the last one, I would encourage you to do a bit of external research about the quest for personal style. The push for personal style over microtrends has begun to gain traction over the last two-ish years, especially in online spaces. It started as a conversation about sustainability and straying away from the enormous waste created by fast fashion and even faster trend cycles. If you choose to embark on this journey, you will be challenged to take a step back from the internet and think, like really think, about what you like and what you don’t when it comes to fashion. What silhouettes make you feel hot, which colors enhance your eyes, what accessories make you feel chic? The biggest challenge in this journey is trying to remove yourself from external influences, and really take stock of who you are and what you like.
I did say there were two capsules to choose from, and I will stand by that. Should you choose to dismiss the personal style warriors of the world, and find that tracking and adhering to the trend cycle works for you, no harm no foul! Everybody is different, and different things work for different people. The ultimate point of this piece is not to attempt to dictate your life, but simply to encourage you to do what you truly want to do, despite what millions of anonymous voices claim are cool right now. Try to relinquish the worry that you don’t look as chic as everybody else, as long as you can dig it, that’s all that counts. The race is long, yes, but ultimately, it is only with yourself.
Models: Gillian Tokar, Mia Cunningham, and Pamela Solon
Photographer: Marz
Stylist: Alexis Mirano
Assistant Stylist, Editor-in-Chief, Creative Director: Pilar Bradley
Makeup Artist: Jade Burdman
Hair Stylist: Rhia McGowan
Nail Artist: Rose Schierlitz
Editorial Assistant: Nadia Adams
Fashion Director: Monica Robles
Managing Editor: Nova Krasner
Graphic Designer: Victor Shemper
Writer: Cecilia Connelly
Fashion Editor: Audrey Tobin
