Ten years before its time, a fashion is indecent; ten years after, it is hideous; but a century after, it is romantic.
Interpretation
Fashion is often misunderstood in its own time, with perceptions changing dramatically across generations.
James Laver's quote highlights the evolving nature of fashion and how societal perceptions are influenced by the passage of time. He suggests that what is deemed unacceptable or unattractive in the current moment can be viewed as romantic and appealing in the distant future, illustrating the subjective and often cyclical nature of aesthetic values in art and culture.
In practice
Use this quote to illustrate how fashion trends return over time when discussing a new collection.
The country that I was coming from, the island I was in, hadn't been written about, really. So I thought that I virtually had it all to myself, including the language that was spoken there, which was a French Creole, and a landscape that is not recorded, really, and the people.
Music is emotional, and you may catch a musician in a very unemotional mood or you may not be in the same frame of mind as the musician. So a critic will often say a musician is slipping.
My songs are personal music, they're not communal. I wouldn't want people singing along with me. It would sound funny. I'm not playing campfire meetings. I don't remember anyone singing along with Elvis, Carl Perkins or Little Richard.
Any artist, when he goes in to record, should have the feeling that any song he records can be a hit. This may sound egotistical, but it makes sense.
But remember this, Japanese boy... airplanes are not tools for war. They are not for making money. Airplanes are beautiful dreams. Engineers turn dreams into reality.
Men admire the man who can organize their wishes and thoughts in stone and wood and steel and brass.
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