We all saw Kourtney Kardashian and the rest of the clan prancing around Portofino, Italy for her wedding a few months. Decorated in Dolce and Gabbana, with many elements of lace, crosses, and all black. This wedding was very much what I consider “High Fashion Goth”. With the popularity of couples like Kravis and MGK with Megan Fox, the whole gothic aesthetic has come back to shine. This was inevitable as the general rule of thumb is that anything in style 20 years ago will be in style now.
Goth took on many definitions throughout the years. First being the actual gothic period which we know as the Medieval era where we got a lot of cool looking Cathedrals. Second is in literature with the works of Edgar Allen Poe being referenced and popular novels like Frankenstein or Dracula to name a few. For this goth era think the clothing styles of Sleepy Hollow, The Corpse Bride, Wolfman and I dare say Sweeny Todd or The Phantom of the Opera. Perfect time period to call this era is either the late Victoria Era (1880s) or the Gilded Age. Where we strayed from the bustle and introduced fish tail dresses mixed with frills and lace. Then we move on to the goth era that the 1980s introduced. Birthed after the post punk era you want to think lace, velvet, crosses, and leather. This can be seen with how it mixes punk and some aspect of the new romantics. Great designers that do a wonderful job at this style is Vivienne Westwood. In 90s we got heroine chic mixed with grunge. From there emerged Alexander McQueen who used plaid and vintage influences on the runway.
Finally, the early 2000s where all I can think of is bands like My Chemical Romance and bondage pants. This era introduced what we call now the scene kid who has crazy side swept bangs and has a lot of lolita influence to their clothing or just all black. This is the style that we can see slowly coming back with many fashion houses seeing the rise of Y2K they often look at the collections of those years to see how they can evolve their style for today. High fashion goth to me is not the Y2K goth we all saw with the bondage pants, chipped black nail polish, and the ugly tutu skirt over ripped shorts. To me high fashion goth takes the elements of what the traditional styles of then were and reinforces them to be replicated on the runway in a way that will appeal to the eyes of 2022 and 2023. These collections and looks are done in a more sophisticated way. It’s almost vamp glamour meets goth glamour and a little bit of pope fashion here and there.
The runway is often littered with lace, crosses, darker clothes and a lot of late Victoria era hints here and there. This can be seen clearly in the styles we saw the Kardashian clan wear to the wedding. But these elements also bring a different take on the style. It’s much more glamours, almost romantic some would say. There’s something ethereal about the high fashion take on the gothic style that it’s hard to even put into words. Not only can it be portrayed in a whimsical way where there’s lace and frill but it can also be shown in a more tech-wear approach. Elements of what is considered traditional goth fashion has translated amongst many high fashion runway shows that it’s given a new life to it. I feel that now we will see the rise of the chokers and cross necklaces that lay perfectly above the breast. Along with many velvety dress with lace applique peeking through. But we will also see streetwear that has influences of the style or even cottage core morphing into dark fairy core (yes this is what I saw it was called online). A reinterpretation of what we knew and considered high fashion goth.
Tati Violet 