When thinking of 80’s fashion, the words ‘big and bright’ surely sums it up. It was a decade of big hair, padded shoulders, and eye-straining fabric colors and patterns. Fashion in the 1980s was about materialistic values and flaunting wealth. Having the right clothes meant spending extra money to buy designer labels and sports goods with a brand logo.
The 1980s gave rise to more fashion idols than any previous decade. It’s hard to imagine now, but in the 80s there were no cell phones or internet. TV offered only a few channels, and watching a movie was a luxury. After television, magazines, and advertising were the average person’s main source of fashion information.
Limited exposure gave a select group of celebrities, music bands, and eighties clothing brands the opening to exert a significant influence on 80’s fashion trends.
These fascinating black and white photos were taken by John Phillips that show street fashion of young people in the 1980s. The cities include London (England), Aberdeen (Scotland), Paris (France), Granada (Spain), Paros island (Greece).
