With Valentine’s Day coming up this weekend, everyone is thinking about love.
Hal Rubenstein, a co-founder and former fashion director at InStyle magazine, spoke Wednesday at the Phoenix Art Museum. Rubenstein debuted his new book, “The Looks of Love,” in October.
In his book, Rubenstein focuses on love in movies, television, politics and photographs. From Bonnie and Clyde to Kurt and Courtney, Rubenstein covers it all.
To him, love is the most powerful thing in the world. It is exciting to think about falling in love and those memories you share with loved ones. His biggest inspiration for his work came from his father.
Rubenstein’s parents were married for 60 years. For his father, there was Hal’s mother first and then all other women. He saw her beauty in a way she never had. He taught her how to love herself.
Hal’s parents shaped the way he learned to love.
“Life offers many choices, but when in doubt, I choose romance every time,” Rubenstein said.
The link between love and fashion is strong. People wear what they love and what makes them feel good. The history of fashion has been shaped by those brave enough to stand out.
Rubenstein was a young man when he attended the Woodstock Music & Art Fair in 1969. Throughout that three-day festival, there was no violence, only complete harmony. At Wednesday’s talk, he showed pictures from the festival. The fashion depicted is still very popular today.
The fashion style from Woodstock remains iconic because it is from an era in which people believed love was the answer to all problems. Unlike the people who attend Coachella spending hundreds of dollars on each outfit, the people of Woodstock simply showed up for the music and didn’t focus on what they wore. The $40 ticket price was already a large expense for people at the time.
The most important message Rubenstein gave during his speech was that fashion is personal. Your style should be for yourself.
As of today, it has turned into a competition of “who wore it better” and focusing on the amount of Instagram likes.
“Clothes are your first adventure of the day,” Rubenstein said, explaining that it is a form of expression.
One thing not to lose is your sense of humor with fashion, said Rubenstein. People have become so serious with their looks and dressing “business appropriate” that they forget clothing is fun.
Contact the author at Megan.Amandio@asu.edu. Contact the columnist at lallnatt@asu.edu
