Contradiction of Punk Fashion

I find the contradictions inherent in punk fashion very interesting, as there appears to be an irresolvable struggle between the desire to be original and not conform and the nature of following a trend. Punk fashion seems to be an attempt to come across as authentic and original despite it’s very constructed and trend following nature. The ripped clothes adorned with safety clips at first glance portray an uncared for aesthetic. While on one level these fashion choices promote the idea of not caring or conforming to mainstream fashion they are nonetheless a fashion choice. Wearers of punk fashion consciously construct what they feel is an oppositional image and in doing so they follow an already formed trend. I find it interesting that even punk fashion, which was born out of the desire not to conform, ends up becoming a kind of uniform. The very fact that safety pins and ripped clothes can be labeled punk fashion works to show that these fashion choices aren’t original; a significant group of people have embraced these choices in order to belong to the social group of what it means to be Punk. While the very first people to make these fashion choices were original and non-conformist the large group to follow seems to take away from this originality. Clothing choices, which would once have considered to be non-conformist and transgressive, are now less so. While wearers of punk fashion are still not mainstream their fashion has become a kind of uniform.