Clowncore – an existential image crisis. Parents have uttered the emotionally deprecating stock phrase “you look like a clown” to children for years. Recently, wearing as many colors as possible, lavish makeup, face tattoos and dressing like a clown year-round has become a niche trend in the underground. Whether it’s a way of reclaiming past scars or a way of embracing vibrancy and embracing the full spectrum of looks, clown aesthetics are a fun trend for 2018.
The sad clown is an image that sarcastically projects happiness and laughter, bringing lighthearted attention to anxiety, depression, and prescription drug use culture. It’s a self aware mask that brings a bit of humor to dark times. The 2007 Sad Clown Bad Summer 9 EP by Minneapolis-based hip hop duo, Atmosphere, was one of the earlier projects that incorporated this imagery into the scene aesthetic. In 2011, the viral documentary American Juggalo was released, making it cooler than ever to be “down with the clown.” This film raised awareness in the mainstream culture about Insane Clown Posse fandom and made them seem like approachable people despite their pre-existing reputation for violence and drug abuse.
Alexander McQueen dipped into the worlds of depressed Victorian clowns as early as FW01 with his collection of carnival crashers, putting shredded Miss Havisham lace and tulle gowns and deconstructed martinet suiting on his fashion merry-go- round. Back in 2006, Gareth Pugh made his solo runway debut with a surreal parade of black and gold diamond bodysuits and coats, explosive ruffs and pompom updos. When John Galliano returned to fashion in 2015, he also returned to clowns, showcasing lurid, cartoonish makeup in his first ready-to- wear collection for Maison Margiela. For Givenchy SS17,
creative director Riccardo Tisci piled on the stripes and dots and swirls creating a modern urban clown look.
Clowncore is also a close relative of the halloweenstorecore trend that’s been happening on the runway since Ashley Williams “Bad Mood” SS16 collection. The cult London-based fashion designer sent her models down the runway looking like heroin-chic gothic babes dressed in red pleather adorned in classic emo hardcore patches. Tattoo and body modificiation figure Grace Neutral closed out the show, creating a more alternative space for luxury fashion. The hyper-Hot Topic kitsch Halloween party store vibes were soon after picked up by Dior, Louis Vuitton, and many other luxury brands that would not
typically embrace tokenized underground emo culture.
Techno music queens Olivia Galov and Abby Fiscus launched a sad clown themed party series in 2015 at Happyfun Hideaway, a staple Brooklyn, NY nightlife spot. Dressed up in full sad clown attire, they offered free drinks to any partygoers who showed up wearing clown looks or would agree to get a pie thrown in their face. It was a hit. Dressing up as a clown provided party attendees with a sense of escapism from the everyday and a way to channel a different self when face with the exclusivity of NY nightlife. This is one of the major recent happenings that led the underground culture into the clowncore trend. It’s also safe to blame the circus atmosphere of the most recent presidential election for the
clown mania as the trend started emerging in late 2016 while political debates were in full swing. Underground fashion is adapting to a climate where the president is sometimes as orange as an oompa loompa from Willy Wonka.
Montreal based online one-off fashion designer, Yard666sale embroidered neon clown garments that were a hit among fashion bloggers of all kinds paired with a dark yet playful message; “sniffing glue won’t keep families together.” New York based illustrator Kelsey Niziolek was one of the first artists to start incorporating cool graphic representations of sad clowns and circuis motifs into her work. @whatevernbd of Depop fame was one of the first underground fashion bloggers to start repping clowncore. She now sells a variety of hand painted puff paint custom clothing with rainbow bright clown
textile motifs. Chicago-based lifestyle artist, @casperblaise a.k.a Reygan, has one of the most iconic and recognizable looks in the underground. When she’s not at School of the Art Institute of Chicago, she spends her time thrift shopping and maintaining her facial-piercing and makeup-heavy rainbow looks. She often mismatches earrings, wears multiple layers, combines many clothing pieces into one, wears googly eyes, draws on her face and looks very radical. She has a highly refined, intricate, and well-considered aesthetic that has successfully reached the highest level of the Clowncore trend.
A particularly interesting sub-trend of the sad clown aesthetic is the dark Ronald McDonald aesthetic. Images of the fast food icon dressed in all black as if he were a gothic clown have surfaced on Tumblr. AW14 season of Milan Fashion Week saw McDonalds Moschino as legendary designer Jeremy Scott sent models out draped up in red and yellow sexy fast food inspired garments adorned in the golden arches. Some carried trays of the fast food down the runway as an ironic yet luxurious take on “fast fashion”.
The October 2017 release of the new It movie sparked a steady month long wave of people in the underground music scene getting Loser/Lover Tattoos including heavy-hitters Playboy Carti, Lil Uzi Vert and Too Poor. The clown trend is also tied to upcoming rappers such as Lil Wop who frequently spits horrorcore type bars and members of GothBoiClique who create music about vampires, ghosts, black lipstick, castles and otherHalloween type imagery.
A full-blown cousin of Blood on the Dance Floor and other horror inspired scene/emo music, the current popularity of face tattoos, and brightly colored hair in hip hop is linked to clown aesthetics as the look is being utilized as a tool to project a bold image and iconic look to fans. It may be ten months away, but the time is right to start getting dressed up for Halloween.
Photo Credits:
1) Clown shoes – @sourapplecider
2) Alexander McQueen FW01 Runway Merry Go Round – Firstview
3) Puff Paint Jester Pants – @whatevernbd
4) Yard666sale Embroidered Clown – @yard666sale
5) Casper Blaise a.k.a Reygan, @casperblaise