ISTD 2017 Competition Entry
Fickle Fads and Followers of Fashion
(Mods and Skins)
When first seeing this brief, my immediate reaction was to
research the rich history we have of British subcultures, which encapsulate music, style and youth culture. My research was very extensive but, Dick Hebdidge helped me really understand the meaning of a subculture and what it means to belong to one. I researched his writing early in my project in order to fully understand my subject matter and try to base my research around these points.
I chose two of my favourite styles, The Mod and The Skinhead and decided to depict the contrast in their look and fashion in the form of typography. Choosing a very clean cut and more classic look for representing what the mods believed, and how they dressed, then showing its transformation into a rougher and more harsh version with the skinheads. I created a publication of two halves to show this movement from a more classic style of the mods to a rough and ready skinhead.
I decided on a ‘tabloid’ sized newspaper as seen in my research due to the British press and their infamous betrayal of British youths and ‘gangs’ during these periods of the 60’s, I also felt this style of print most suited the working class roots of British subculture which is a key aspect I wanted to focus on, wth the phrase ‘clean living under difficult circumstances’ being used throughout, to place meaning on the backgrounds and lives of young people in these groups.
Throughout this project I really enjoyed learning about the two subcultures and found the way one merged to another fascinating. Throughout the project I have continuously developed my layouts and type, especially through changes in typeface throughout the books first section, and then the constant manipulation in the second section, becoming more and more collaged and rough, it was designed to create a stark contrast between the two cultures, but with many of the same social undercurrents in the text, showing key similarities between subcultures, like belonging to a group, self expression or working class roots.
