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Strike a pose ... with Lee Lin Chin

Editorial Review

Editorial Review

11 Jul-12 Oct 2008
National Archives of Australia
Queen Victoria Tce, Canberra

If you're bemused by the space-age honing device sported in this model shoot it helps to know you're looking at a piece of fashion history. Parading a fashionista's response to the moon landing of 1969, these so-called 'angels in orbit' are one of several images exhibited at Strike a Pose...with Lee Lin Chin, a celebration of Australian fashion exploring the quirky and cutting-edge cloth trends of the 1960s and '70s.

Curated by Lee Lin Chin, SBS broadcaster and stalwart fashionista, the exhibition digs deep into the vaults of the National Archives of Australia to draw out images from fashion shoots and everyday life although, given the flamboyance of hippie-era streetwear, it's occasionally difficult to spot which look is borne of the catwalk and which developed in front of the mirror at home. Teens in granny dresses and doe-eyed Audrey lookalikes pose alongside Melbourne Cup 'larrikins' in tuxes, top hats and jeans cut off mid-thigh, which are fetchingly paired with striped knee-high socks to show off hamstrings large enough to rival their lamb-chop sideburns. The ubiquitous mini appears in all guises, often matched with its co-twin, the duffle coat.

Also featured at the exhibitions will be the works of up-and-coming Canberra photography and design students, who lift the theme of Australian fashion from the 1960s and into the noughties and beyond. However, since fashion styles inevitably wheel round again - as your parents' now-cool vintage gear attests - we may see more honing device headgear yet.

Lucy David