I came across a SL® Magazine called AndroGenius. Can't explain, really, how I felt, when I read it. In the 1st issue of the Magazine the whole concept of androgyny is well explained and yet, as the 2nd issue came out, it was hard to read it, with Frolic Mills in the cover without any 'androgynous' sense into it.
I must say that it's not easy to portray such a concept. It starts with the image itself - it's a style, a conceptual way of life. An androgynous person styles himself or herself, easily. It's part of their personality, reflected in the way they dress, in the way they do their hair, skin, make up, everything, basically.
It's very hard for me to see in SL®, people trying to be androgynous, especially in the fashion and model industry. It's not about trying; wether you are or you aren't androgynous.
Taking a look at RL androgynous models, you'll understand what I mean.
Now, take a look at one issue of AndroGenius Magazine.
I do understand the idea, but it's not exactly what andogyny is. I was expecting a highly editorial magazine, not a male model wearing women's clothes - as shown in the articles inside the magazine.
That's not androgyny at all.
A man wearing long hair in not androgynous and a woman wearing short hair, a hat and a tie is not androgynous either. It's way past that!
Androgyny is a way of life, natural, easy.
In most asian countries, being androgynous comes naturally. In that sense, they are way ahead of western countries.
To have a SL® magazine entirely dedicated to androgyny is quite a bold and daring project. It requires the best quality in terms of image, layout of the magazine itself and the written articles.
I applaude the idea, but cannot applaude the result so far. Hopefully, with time, this magazine makes a statement in SL® fashion.
Unfortunately, most people don't fully understand the concept of androgyny; they don't understand that it's not about being a transgender nor a drag queen. There is a conceptual quality to it; it's stylish and very fashionable. As we all know, not many people in SL®'s fashion industry have the skills to fully understand it; I do think androgyny reaches the realm of the ultimate creativity and art , body and mindwise.
NOTE: RL models in the photos above:
Photo 1: Omayara Mota
Photo2: Brittani Kline
Photo 3: Andrej Pejic
Photo 4: Martin Core
