Subcultures and Subcultural Style

Subcultures are groups, within a larger with a culture distinct from the majority. Often, they substitute their own shared conventions or rituals for those of the mainstream.

Style is an essential component of every subculture, as it differentiates its members from the masses. Style might indicate: religious affiliation (or lack thereof, e.g. the Darwin Fish), ethnic or regional pride (the Dashiki, a soccer fan's scarf), or just an aesthetic tendency (all-black clothing, pink hair, a scarf on a man, and so on).

Since everyone (save the blind) judges people by their appearance, people naturally try to broadcast their personality and affiliation through their dress and comportment.

And since everyone conforms to something, symbols allow someone to conform, either to the group norms or the mainstream norms, while expressing their individuality.

This website features articles about popular youth subcultures from the last century, based not on race, religion or class, but on a common outlook and philosophy. The articles below are alphabetized by the most common name, or label, given to each subculture.

Beatniks
    Beatnik Fashion
    Get the Beatnik Look

Emo - All Emo Articles
    Emo Clothes    Emo Hairstyles

Goth - See All Goth Articles
    Gothic Fashion Influneces
    Goth Makeup
    Gothic Photographs

Gothic Lolita
    Classic Lolita
    Gothic Lolita Gallery

Hipster - See All Hipster Articles

Kinderwhore
    Kinderwhore Makeup

No Wave
    No Wave. Post Punk. Underground by Moore and Coley

Punk - See All Punk Articles
    Punk Hairstyles
    Girl's Punk Hairstyles
    Punk Models

Riot Grrrl

Teddy Girls

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