[MetroActive Arts]

[ Arts Index | SF Metropolitan | MetroActive Central | Archives ]

Concrete Runway

[whitespace] Rashmee Singh Ivy Street

Words and pictures by Thendara Kida

Name: Rashmee Singh

Age: 21

Origin: Lived in London for the past two years--two years in NYC and born and raised in upstate New York.

What are you wearing?:

Sneakers: Black platform sneakers, Sketchers.

Sunglasses: I don't remember where they are from!

Shirt: A baby-blue polyester shirt that I found in the old lady's department in some department store in Buffalo.

Where do you get your hair done?: I'm new to the area, so I haven't found a place in the city yet. I've made an appointment this weekend to get a student haircut at Cowboys and Angels.

What do you think of SF fashion vs. NY or London fashion?: I find that fashion in SF and NYC are quite similar. London's a bit different because it seems as though people are willing to take more risks. The British in general seem to be less obsessed with their looks and their bodies, which allows them to be more experimental.

Do you read women's fashion magazines?: I used to, but I don't anymore, because I find them a bit irritating. The majority of them cater to the lives of a small and wealthy fraction of the population, people who can afford to spend $100 on a shirt or visit a spa on the weekends. I think that most of them are a bit elitist.

Do you feel to be fashionable is to be elitist?: It depends, generally upon how someone goes about being fashionable. I think that consumers who are excessively extravagant and will only wear labels like Armani or DKNY are elitist, because they are supporting an elitist industry. Most people do not have the money to purchase these brands, whose only function in society is to overtly distinguish those who have money from those who do not. I don't think there is any reason why a Calvin Klein shirt should be more expensive than one from the Gap. It's just a capitalist myth that you need to spend a lot of money on clothes and makeup to look good.

Who do you look to for style?: Nobody in particular, really. Though, I think that what I wear is heavily influenced by the music I listen to, which is generally British indie.

[ San Francisco | MetroActive Central | Archives ]


From the November 16-29, 1998 issue of the Metropolitan.

Copyright © Metro Publishing Inc. Maintained by Boulevards New Media.