REVIEW OF STREETSTYLE BY TED POLHEMUS Streetstyle is both my least theoretical and my most financially successful book. Coincidence? The awesomely extensive research necessary for its creation was made possible by the fact that I was receiving a monthly wage from the Victoria & Albert museum to research the same subject for what turned out to be a very successful exhibition. What I find most remarkable and delightful about Streetstyle is the extent to which a history of fifty years of streetstyle turns out to be an effective history of everything which has happened in the last fifty years of Western history. For example, in explaining the rise of the Teddy Boys in 1950s Britain one is simultaneously explaining the rise of the Labour party. Likewise, the rise of ‘dressing down’ subcultures such as the Beats, the Hippies and then Rave, reveals both the cultural impact of economic affluence and the extent to which the search for authenticity lies at what should be the heart of Western culture in the second half of the 20th century. Streetstyle also precisely plots the way in which the second half of the 20th century - uniquely - saw the concept of ‘Culture’ redefined not only to include that which would previously have been dismissively labelled as ‘popular’ but, indeed, to be captivated by it. I mention all this not only to underline my remarkable talent, but also to contradict those who would have us believe that appearance style constitutes a mere superficial irrelevance. Style isn’t simply an icing on the cake of culture; it is culture - generating as well as expressing the profound tectonic shifts of history. (And, by the way, it was always so.) Yes, Streetstyle is still in print! - Ted Polhemus