PUNK: Chaos to Couture by The Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Fashion is fluid. It always has been and perhaps it always will be. In this world ideas get recycled and trends tend to come full circle, but almost always with a little something extra. A minor twist, a short enhancement, or a little tweak to what was once an out-of-style item can bring it back with a vengeance, occasionally propelling it to high fashion status or landing it a spot at a museum.The spring exhibition by The Costume Institute of  the Metropolitan Museum of Art is titled, PUNK: Chaos to Couture. Opening on May 9^th, and on display through August 14^th, 2013, it aims to demonstrate the influence punk has had on high fashion from its initial conception to the present day.When punk was just emerging, it was a raw, unpolished and somewhat audacious style mainly resulting out of the youth’s yearning for individual freedom and self-expression. Flowing out of England, America and Australia in the mid 1970’s, it soon became a popular sub-cultural movement that picked up further notoriety when the Sex Pistols gained recognition. Fueled by anti-establishment views, it spread like fire throughout the underground.One of the best ways to understand punk is to think of it as a cultural movement that pieced together every other youthful cultural movement since WWII. Held together by “safety pins”, it reflected the segmentation and alienation of the youth from the formal propriety of the proceeding generation; WWII gave way to modern abstract art, garage rock, new philosophies, new rules and even new politics around the world from which punk drew it’s inspiration.Today’s punk is polished, trendy, and most certainly mainstream. Versace is doing it via their vunk style, a dominatrix–inspired haute fashion statement intended for this years fall. Moschino is showcasing a large number of England inspired punkesque attire with a modern and sophisticated flare. Even Chanel is going Daft Punk chic by replacing their signature pearls with chains and metalSometimes it’s funny to think about the meaning of punk. Many believe that the movement was about chaos or carelessness, but the irony is that the style was purposeful, thought-out  and rather intensely conceptualized. Current "punk" is also meticulously put together, now that it's manufactured by some of the most prestigious fashion houses in the world. Advertised by famous models, appearing on many of the hottest stars, and even getting it’s own exhibit at the Met, it seems like punk has come full circle, now that it was tweaked to be high fashion.Photo Source: Wiki Commons