To begin my Final Major Project I spent some time researching around subcultures, non conformist attitudes, social constructs and gender. 

I looked into subcultures because they are groups that reflect values outside of social norms, which I was interested in looking into. In particular, I looked at Punk values and Punk art which has activist and anarchistic tones. I was drawn to the work of Jamie Reid due to the layering of collage, drawing and stamping and the political links.

Following my research into punk ideas around the critique and rejection norms, I looked into the Dada movement which, ideologically has many similarities such as the critique of politics, controversy to encourage questioning and use of collage and DIY ethic. 

Looking at video compilations of punks in the 70s and 80s, I was drawn to the alternative style of their clothing, makeup and hair, and the way their appearance opposed typical societal standards. Many choices of clothing were specifically linked to their beliefs for example: recycled clothing is a reaction against overconsumption and patches were worn with provocative and political messages.

Next, I did some research into Jean Paul Gaultier, in particular his 90s runways because he was known for playing with gender stereotypes in his designs. I am keen to look into ideas around gender as I think it will be an interesting way to look into non conformity and stereotypes. Through looking at more depth into Gaultier, I found his work, while trying to question stereotypes around gender, enforced harmful stereotypes in other ways. A lot of his designs are appropriated from a generalised 'aesthetic' of traditional clothing from the Global South. This appropriation, which is very common amongst Western designers prompted me to think about how gender non conformity has been 'reinvented' by the Western world to seem like a Western concept, when it is something that has always existed in Indigenous cultures. 

Gender non conformity has a close link to colonialism. In many non-Western cultures pre-colonialism, fluid forms of gender and gender expression were embraced and celebrated, however, through colonialism these attitudes were suppressed. In Nigeria, the Igbo tribe has a tradition where the men perform a masked dance to portray feminine ideals, link to their feminine spirits and negotiate the gender roles within the community. I also looked at gender and colonialism in a broader sense by looking at Alok V Menon's spoken word art, as well as gender non conformity in the fashion industry.