” Woman of the 80s, but woman until the end of the breast, having managed to amalgamate authority and charm »Sings Michel Sardou. Words that today we would probably find sexist, but that say a lot about the mentality of a part of France of this decade with such a characteristic aesthetic.
The political context of an aesthetic revolution
This period has seen many political upheavals: in 1981 the country elected François Mitterrand as president and Jack Lang became Minister of Culture from 1981 to 1986, chaining together strong actions for the sector. As Ronald Reagan became President of the United States (1981-1989) and Margaret Thatcher Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1979-1990), together spearheading a form of conservative revolution, the political context helped to create a colorful art scene. and sculptural forms, strong and pointed.
While the women parade in suits with bare shoulders business women imagined by Thierry Mugler and Claude Montana, Philippe Starck contributes to a new French impetus for design together with Elizabeth Garouste and Mattia Bonetti, while photographers such as Jean-Paul Goude and Jean-Baptiste Mondino follow important advertising campaigns.
“Decade of money and entertainment”… and individualism
It is this period in Technicolor that explores the exhibition “80s. Fashion, design and graphics in France”, at the Museum of Decorative Arts, from 13 October 2022 to 16 April 2023.
The decade of the Roaring Twenties of evenings at the Palace and the Bains Douches is then relived in this Parisian museum through a transversal exhibition that mixes design, fashion and art, in all their eccentricity. But also advertising, which then takes power, as the institution underlines:
” Decade of money and entertainment, the 80s today they evoke a form of carelessness and lightness of an era in which the media and communication extend their influence to all fields of society. The political ideals that marked the previous decades are running out, fragmenting society into multiple social and cultural groups that value individuality. In a context of cult of the image, fashion becomes a privileged instrument of representation. “
Exposure “1980s. Fashion, design and graphics in France” at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs (107 Rue de Rivoli, 75001 Paris), from 13 October 2022 to 16 April 2023.
Front page photo credit: Paris Museum of Decorative Arts.
Source: Madmoizelle
Ashley Root is an author and celebrity journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a keen eye for all things celebrity, Ashley is always up-to-date on the latest gossip and trends in the world of entertainment.
