Every Thursday, AF profiles a style icon from the music world. This week, check out Kim Gordon’s inspiring trajectory as prolific noise musician, visual artist, and fashion designer, peruse the looks she’s had over her incredible thirty-year career, and check out the looks she’s helped create.
As a founding member of Sonic Youth, Kim Gordon’s been a style icon for over three decades now. She attended Otis Art Institute and moved to NYC in 1979, where she had planned to pursue making visual art, but all that changed when she heard noise acts like DNA and Mars, making sound her main medium. But she’s always retained a chic, artistic eye when it comes to her wardrobe, which takes a DIY aesthetic to bold new levels.
Gordon’s always been seen as unassailably cool, whether clad in grunge-era staples like plaid jackets, black chokers, vintage tees, shredded jeans (and her signature striped dress!) or designing high-end lines for Mirror/Dash and Surface to Air. Her turn as fashion designer stretches back to the 90’s, when she created X-Girl with Daisy von Furth, a skater inspired line geared toward the Sassy-reading crowd. These days, she’s doing noise improvisations with Bill Nace as Body/Head, playing in sculptural platforms, sequined minis, and billowing tops. She’s also been focusing on creating visual art and writing a memoir with the working title Girl In A Band. There is pretty much nothing she can’t do, and the grace and wit that’s carried her through intense life changes is reflected in her clothing choices.
BODY/HEAD (KING LUDWIG 2013 #3) from King Ludwig on Vimeo.
To get Kim’s look, the key is DIY. Think hand-painted shirts with loaded phrases, ironic cat tees, and letting your roots grow out just so. At the same time, know when and how to do elegance with silky, structured pieces in bold colors and classic patterns. Check out our style board on Pinterest for more ideas!
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