The internet and dreams go hand in hand. As dream researcher Professor J.F. Pagels comments in his essay “Internet Dreaming, Is The Web Conscious?”:
“The most common definition of dream, what you will find if you Google or search the index at your local library, is loosely Freudian wish fulfillment: dream marriages, dream vacations, dream homes, dream sex, and dream cars. The Internet has become a repository for such human dreams.”
The internet is where we broadcast our dream selves. We share carefully cultivated images with the world at large, not just to express who we are but who we want to be.
Of course, fashion plays an important part in this presentation. The clothes we wear also express something about our essential selves to the world. They’re like dreams woven in fabric.
Like designer Ralph Lauren once commented, “I don’t design clothes, I design dreams.”
Digital clothing is taking that even further. But what is digital clothing, and does it live up to its buzz?
What Is Digital Clothing?
Digital technology has been increasingly interwoven into the fashion industry in recent years. Digital clothing can mean several things, as a result. It could be fashion trends that incorporate digital technology, like flexible screens or wearable tech.
We’ll be focusing on a specific branch of digital clothing, however. There’s been a trend in recent years of virtual fashion houses, who create garments solely for the purpose of upgrading your photos. Think of digital clothing as Snapchat filters for your wardrobe.
Consider the Neo-Ex collection by Carlings. The collection from the Norwegian designers takes inspiration from fighting games like Tekken, with oversized yellow trenchcoats and glitched-out jerseys emblazoned with computer code. Take a look at Carlings’ website, and you’ll quickly realize digital clothing is so much more than just a crummy .jpg to badly photoshop on your photos.
Instead, when you purchase an item from Carlings’ digital collection, their in-house designers custom render a 3D model for your exact measurements. This is like having a custom tailor for your online avatars.
The Rise Of Digital Fashion
Are people really going to be willing to spend hard-earned physical money on some pixelated clothing? Kerry Murphy, the founder of Dutch digital fashion house The Fabricant thinks that people will spend nearly as much money on virtual fashion as they do on a tangible wardrobe in the not-so-distant-future.
The idea has some precedent.
Consider the rising popularity of in-app purchases. Glu Mobile’s Covet Fashion generated $53.4 million in one year. The Kim Kardashion: Hollywood game has earned over $240 million selling virtual Karl Lagerfeld and Balmain couture.
These numbers alone illustrate there’s some real money to be made in the virtual fashion niche. There’s room to break into it, as well, as many traditional fashion houses aren’t yet equipped for such a high tech transition.
It makes sense that digital clothing is becoming so popular. Think about how much of our lives are lived online. Think about how many of our daily interactions happen through the portholes of our smartphones and desktops.
On a basic level, digital clothing is just modding your avatar taken to an extreme. After all, making a super cool character that represents a part of yourself, or an idealized version, is a lot of the fun of playing video games.
That’s not the only reason that digital fashion is catching on, either. For one thing, there have been increasing issues surrounding ethical fashion in recent years. Fashion is as complicit in a number of oppressive and damaging frameworks as any other industry.
Digital fashion faces some of the tough questions about fashion’s sustainability, for one thing. They never need to exist in physical space at all, ever. Writing some lines of code produces a lot less waste than weaving and dyeing textiles.
It also investigates the accessibility of fashion. Perhaps more than any other industry, apart from maybe 5-star travel, fashion too often divides demographics into the “haves” and the “have nots.” You shouldn’t have to spend five figures just to feel good about yourself, though.
With digital clothing, you’ll be able to get a slick outfit for $20 instead of $2000.
These two factors alone address a lot of the challenges facing the fashion industry today. It also gives us a hint of where this trend’s leading.
Most of the uses we’ve discussed are an example of augmented reality. We’re already seeing some of the ways that augmented reality is disrupting and reshaping the world we’re living in. The next step is virtual reality, however, where the imagination will truly be the limit.
A totally digital existence is right around the corner, We already have realistic augmented reality and a viable virtual reality is right around the corner, Soon enough, the immersive virtual plaza will open for us, for real.
When so many of our interactions will take place completely online, disconnected from our physical selves, we’ll truly be able to become whoever, or whatever, we want. Fashion will become truly unchained, at the point, when designers can sculpt their wildest fantasies in lurid colors and striking shapes.
The future of digital fashion is unavoidable. You’d do well to start designing your dream avatar now. If you happen to be a die-hard Apple supporter, consider getting a copyright symbol Mac for your custom mods.
Want More Fashion News?
We’re living in exciting times for fashion lovers. Fashion is becoming more diverse, more eclectic, more available. No matter who you are or what you’re about, there’s a style to help you express your innermost self.
Now that you know about the digital clothing fashion trend, browse the rest of our fashion articles for even more style inspiration.
