Religion and Fashion: Chrisitanity Hits The Catwalk
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There are some celebrities that are trend setters and fashion icons. People like Madonna, Lady GaGa, and Adrianna Lima have fashion influence and the styles they choose are often imitated or seen as cool and trendy. This can have a huge influence over whether Christian inspired clothing catches on and also on public opinion of the apparal as well. If stars like Madonna are seen wearing "Mary is my Homegirl" t-shirts, then other people are sure to follow.(http://www.ruggedelegantliving.com/a/002762.html)
Material Girls
Madonna
"The cross is a very powerful symbol and it symbolises suffering, but it also is connected to a person who was loving and sharing and his message was about unconditional love. I tried to take a powerful image and use it to draw attention to a situation that needs attention. For me, we all need to be Jesus in our time. Jesus's message was to love your neighbour as yourself and these are people in need."
~Madonna
About the controversial crucifixion scene in her Confessions tour.
Madonna's music video Like A Prayer used Catholic material culture to acheive her goals. The story revolves around a black man falsely accused of murder. One focus of the video is of a provocative Madonna "turning on" a statue in a Catholic church. The statue is of a black saint who comes alive after being prayed to and kissed by Madonna. The saint eventually becomes the accused black man. At the end of the video the saint goes back on his pedistal behind the altar grate, the black man is released from prison, and Madonna and her cast take a bow before the curtain drops. Madonna's video is a commercial product. It takes religious images and sells them. The video had great success because it played with peoples long-standing attitudes toward Christian images. (Material Christianity, pg 63,64)
Lady Gaga
"I struggle with my feelings about the church in particular, but I guess it's quite honestly completely separate, isn't it? Religion and the church are two completely separate things. In terms of religion, I'm very religious. I was raised Catholic I believe in Jesus, I believe in God, I'm very spiritual -- I pray very much. But at the same time there's no one religion that doesn't hate or speak against or be prejudiced against another racial group or religious group or sexual group and for that I think religion is also bogus. So I suppose you could say I'm a quite religious woman that is very confused about religion. I dream of and envision a future where we have a more peaceful religion or a more peaceful world a more peaceful state of mind for the younger generation."
~Lady Gaga
(Larry King Live, June 1, 2010)
~Lady Gaga
(Larry King Live, June 1, 2010)
Lady GaGa made a name for herself in New York's lower east side club scene. Her shows are very theatrical, "shock art" performances. She has said “I always loved rock and pop and theater. When I discovered Queen and David Bowie is when it really came together for me and I realized I could do all three.” Lady Gaga has said that Peggy Bundy, and Donatella Versace are her fashion icons. “I look at those artists as icons in art. It’s not just about the music. It’s about the performance, the attitude, the look; it’s everything. And, that is where I live as an artist and that is what I want to accomplish.” (http://www.ladygaga.com/bio/)
Adriana Lima
Adriana Lima was born on June 12, 1981 in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. She is a Brazilian supermodel, best known as a Victoria's Secret Angel. At age 16 she signed with a
model management company and moved to New York city. Since then she has modelled in Vogue and Marie Claire several times and has appeared in such magazines as GQ and Maxxim. As for runway fashion, she has walked down catwalks for Cynthia Rowley, Vera Wang, Christian Lacroix, Emanuel Ungaro, Betsey Johnson, Girls Rule, Richard Tyler, Emporio Armani, Georgio Armani, Randolph Duke, Fendi, and Valentino.
She is also a devout Catholic who attends church every sunday.
(http://people.famouswhy.com/adriana_lima/#ixzz15wb7r0FB, http://www.gq.com/women/photos/200603/adriana-lima-virgin-underwear-model)
model management company and moved to New York city. Since then she has modelled in Vogue and Marie Claire several times and has appeared in such magazines as GQ and Maxxim. As for runway fashion, she has walked down catwalks for Cynthia Rowley, Vera Wang, Christian Lacroix, Emanuel Ungaro, Betsey Johnson, Girls Rule, Richard Tyler, Emporio Armani, Georgio Armani, Randolph Duke, Fendi, and Valentino.
She is also a devout Catholic who attends church every sunday.
(http://people.famouswhy.com/adriana_lima/#ixzz15wb7r0FB, http://www.gq.com/women/photos/200603/adriana-lima-virgin-underwear-model)
