THE KING RETURNS2014

The growing interest in the nature of “masculine” order is best understood symbolically. This trend has become vis-ible in “the recent surge of interest in the artistry and crafts-manship of men’s wear,” and in a new breed of high caliber barbershops that elevate the “ordinary experience” of an “everyday shave” with straight-razor shaves, and signature hot-towel treatments. More men are realizing that their identities must be crafted with care and intention; that the cut of their trousers is as much a reflection of inner worth and personal style as it is an indication of society’s economic and political well-being. An upcoming exhibition at the Museum of Art Rhode Island School of Design, “Artist/Re-bel/Dandy: Men of Fashion” offers a thematic exploration of […] the “always provocative dandy stance.” The exhibit con-trasts the “social subversion of dandy “revolutionaries,” who express political views through their personal wardrobes, with a dandy “historian’s” appreciation of tailoring tradition, [and] a “connoisseur” [who prides himself on] self-expres-sion over societal conformity.”

The King can be traced to our need for the qualities embod-ied by the archetypal King, discussed frequently in mytholo-gy and psychoanalytic theory. These qualities include “order, or reasonable and rational patterning. [Also...] integration and integrity.” Jungian psychoanalyst Robert Moore, tells us that the King archetype “stabilizes chaotic emotion and out-of-control behaviors. It gives stability and centeredness. It brings calm. [It] mediates vitality, life-force and joy.[…] It defends our own sense of inner order, our own integrity of being and purpose, [and] our own central calmness about who we are.”

KING

The King symbolizes the primordial man, the Adam, what the philosophers call the Anthropos in each of us. Hindus call this primal masculinity in men the Atman; Jews and Christians speak of it as the

imago Dei, the “Image of God.”

CREDITS

The contents of this file are strictly for the reader’s internal use. The iconography contained herein comes from internet, magazines, books and reports. Beth Lauck cannot guarantee the extent and nature of reproduction rights and the use of said visuals.

Photos courtesy of www.fashionbeans.com, baxterfinley.com, www.menstyle1.com. All rights reserved. Copyright Beth Lauck 2013.

Concept: Beth LauckProduction: Beth Lauck