modmuze April 2023

modmuze

Who is the New Woman? Learning to Live Against Societal Norms.

La Vie Est Belle A Comment on Human Existence.

How the French New Wave Reset Film A Brief History.

ENTS CONT-

ARDOISE VIERGE

The Modmuze executive team would like to be the first to say thank you for checking out our latest issue: Ardoise Vierge. Translated from French, Ardoise Vierge means blank slate. Our publication has been through so many changes since we first published in 2017. After seeing team members, editors and artists pass through Modmuze, we decided it was time to slow down and reconnect with the creative work we are lucky to publish while we are here. We wanted this issue to strip down to the basics. Pulling inspiration from French film and vogue, our goal was to use the space we are given to create beauty. Whether it’s finding the time to see the romance in everyday life or focusing on the tex-

from the team the modmuze staff

ture of your clothing, the idea of Ardoise Vierge encourages all of us to slow down and see the beauty in the seemingly empty spaces. We would like to invite you to think about what going back to the basics could mean for you. Please enjoy our first ever fully black and white issue. It has been a pleasure to create it.

With love,

OUR BLANK SLATE

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF & President Emily McCaslin*, MMJ

CREATIVE DIRECTORS & Vice President Jessica Meza, SMSC and Leah Brainerd*, DM

PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Hadley Waldren, ENG

MARKETING DIRECTOR Hannah Schob*, DM

PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR Loren Rogers*, Fashion Merchandising

STYLING DIRECTORS Rylee Keesee, MKTG/MGMT & Sebastian Arias*, DM

WRITERS Cooper Carr

Jillian Eckert

Hailey Juen

PRODUCTION Gavin Pendergraff

Jack Steele

Ruby Van De Steeg *

Katie Wilson

MARKETING Rashad Black

Cristian Camberos

Maddie Gooding

Laiza Hernande z

Lily Hudson

Addie Maze

Joaquin Montiel

PHOTOGRAPHY Sebastian Arias

Rylee Keesee

Loren Rogers

STYLISTS Catie Barrett

Abigail Burnham

Mya Cerda

Logan Howard

Abby Haraway

Maggie Levy

Anabelle Lindsey

Jordan Reimer

Hannah Schob

CREATIVE Mya Cerda

CREATIVE ADVISOR

Kelly Kerr

Multimedia Producer 106 Nancy Randolph Davis 918-691-1813

kelly.kerr@okstate.edu

FACULTY ADVISOR

Cosette Joyner Martinez

Associate Professor Design & Merchandising

434A Human Sciences (405) 744-9525

cosette.joyner_martinez@okstate.edu

modmuze is a fashion and lifestyle magazine produced by students, for students. Our magazine provides a unique platform for students to freely express themselves creatively in any and all ways imaginable. our mantra empowering self-expression

*Incoming Director

TREASURER Patricia Dimick*, DM modmuzemag@okstate.edu

modmuze directing team

emily mccaslin, editor-in-chief

jess meza, creative director

hannah schob, marketing director

loren rogers, photography director

hadley waldren, production director

patricia dimick, treasurer

rylee keesee, outgoing styling director

sebastian arias, styling director

Photos by Rylee Keesee

La Vie Est Belle

The human experience is packed full of miniscule details – small talk with strangers, wildflowers growing, the smell of coffee in the morning, sunsets, your daily commute –these experiences are profoundly personal, yet we hardly ever notice the beauty surrounding us. La vie est belle is about confronting the space around us and finding beauty in our day-to-day lives. As Rick Rubin says, “We tend to think of the artist’s work as the output. The real work of the artist is a way of being in the world.”

Rubin, R. (2023). The Creative Act. Allen & Unwin.

Photos and styling by Rylee Keesee

Layout by Hadley Waldren

Model: Grace Beldsoe

Texture in Fashion

Exploring the Element

By Sebastian Arias

The occasion for the images in this spread is an attempt to highlight fashion texture in low-pressure settings, mostly through slightly unconventional pairings of subjects and their garments in everyday spaces that offer slight juxtapositions. There are images of ironic proximity, dogs in jackets and hoodies that are filled with unserious humor, yet also force us to directly face the fact that these furs and textures in fashion have to come directly from an animal’s back (in the case of real animal skins at least). These didn’t come from one individual shoot but are rather the best of a series of mini photoshoots taken across the span of a week inside of different homes. This was done to highlight the idea of texture in fashion in a general sense rather than to focus on one area in particular. It seems to be that the texture of fabrics can be overlooked past the question of “is it soft?”, and having the images in black and white forces the viewer to truly analyze the surface of the garment, as distracting qualities like color vanish. The main objective of these photos is to invoke the question of texture’s influence in day to day life.

Texture is a key element in the world of fashion. In the current era of athleisure in America, it can be argued that texture is the most important element for today’s fashion designer to consider when designing new garments. For the modern customer, comfort is not a want but a need, and with the number of options at our disposal today, it’s not surprising that modern customers won’t settle for less. The key characteristics in fashion texture that are most prevalent today include textiles that are soft, smooth and breathable. But let’s be real, fashion is more than just comfort for many. Fashion

texture can range from scaly snakeskin, scratchy sheep wool or noisy polyester blends. Although artificial textiles made from synthetic fibers can offer unique texture, it’s primarily in natural textiles where the most interesting textures in fashion can be found, whether they come from plant based fibers or animal based ones. Plant based fibers include linen, hemp, and most importantly cotton. Cotton is one of the most important textiles in fashion today, as it’s one of the key textiles used in athleisure as well as staple fabrics that we see every day, such as denim and flannel. However, it’s animal based fibers that offer the most exciting texture in fashion. Unsurprisingly, when you picture the animals, some of the most popular examples of animal based fibers include alpaca, cashmere, wool, mohair and silk.

Texture in the world of fashion is not just about comfort and touch. Visual elements such as drape and the shaping of the fabric are just as important. The texture of a garment has range in its ability to inflate the silhouette of the wearer just as easily as it can hug the wearer and emphasize curvature

on the silhouette. Yet oftentimes texture in fashion is something we never think of when analyzing the outfits of others.

It has to be mentioned that the region where one is living in is an important factor for texture, as there is a big difference in what one would see somewhere in Scandinavia in contrast to a stroll through Stillwater, Oklahoma. Climate and cultural factors would lead to a much stronger impression of texture in Scandinavia than in Stillwater, as fur jackets and cashmere coats are more eye-catching in comparison to cotton t-shirts and dri-fit shorts.

It would be easy to write off Stillwater, even Oklahoma as a whole, as a desert for fashion texture. Athleisure dominates typical campus fashion, but if I

went to the library this evening, I would spot shiny, sleek dresses, as well as gathered, bubbly dresses or bunched, stout dresses on girls taking senior photos. I guarantee you that I could find rugged denim and firm straw cowboy hats on a walk down the strip. So, occasion must be considered and cannot be overlooked when talking about texture in fashion.

In all actuality, southern tinue to inspire day to day fashion trends, and living in a post COVID world where things have slowly grown more remote, it’s a desire that will only continue to grow. It’s not the visual factors of colors and drape of clothes that dictate the trends yet to be seen; it is the texture and the directly correlated comfort that comes with it that is the unsung hero to whatever fashion evolutions we see next in the future.

Photos, styling and layout by Sebastian Arias

Models: Mikayla Curlee, Autumn Mccart, Alan Tran, Drake Albert, Robby Ward, Alejandro Ugarte, Allison Wade, Lucas Cassady, Rylee Keesee, Rylie Stark

The New Woman was a term that emerged in the early 1900s in the modernist literature movement during and after World War 1. Women were being asked to fight and step out of the everyday role they knew. They were being asked to push their limitations and create a different idea of what a woman could be, so they did. They created the New Woman. The New Woman represented the girl who didn’t belong to society. She stood out on purpose. She worked against the restrictions limiting her freedom and control of her own life. She was pushing the boundaries of a typical housewife and becoming a symbol of what women could be. The New Woman was represented in poems, books, magazines, pictures, posters and more, using a cigarette. The cigarette became a way for women to defy the expectations

Who is the New woman?

by Hailey Juen

Who is the New Woman? The New Woman is outcasted. The New Woman is outspoken. The New Woman is bold, fearless and controversial but in a respectful way. She doesn’t keep her voice down. She wasn’t only made for marriage and love; she was made for much more. The New Woman is who our generation is learning how to be. The New Woman is unapologetically herself.

being put on them by society. The poets of the 19th and 20th centuries ran with this idea. Famous poet and author, Kate Chopin, wrote a poem called “An Egyptian Cigarette” that features a woman stepping away from her companions to smoke her cigarette in case they would be irritated by the smell. These women were of high society and didn’t understand why the woman would be smoking, but the reasoning is fairly clear to the reader. She wants freedom, the separation from that life, to not be tied down to the way of living that told women they had to be presentable and soft every day of their lives. This next poem written by myself was inspired by Chopin’s singsongy style and content and tells of a woman at a party gazing longingly through the window at a woman smoking a cigarette outside.

The music swells but all I see is gray Smoke swirling in the air without delay I dream of putting it to my lips

As she puffs hers in an amorous way

CONTROVER

Tempting as the thoughtless life may be A Prisoner to the Standards of Society

I stand amongst my jailers, awaiting Another proposition to see

Eyes peeled, prim and proper they stand Seeking approval and a rich beaus hand To be a puppet at an alter Strategically pulled by the masters’ commands

The woman in the window cares none About the politics of her fun

Carving her own path in life

One cigarette proves she has won

Defeated the stereotypes

That were meant to be her archetype

The new woman is free

Unburdened, her fresh light still ripe

My soul screams for the taste of freedom

Outside the box of the societal hum

The wind in my hair, the smoke in my lungs

No pressure of what is yet to come

Pulling her final lucious puff

She extinguishes her light with a huff

Stomping the fantasy below the dirt Of what could have been but isn’t enough

Demanding reality calls me back

Letting go of the whip with a crack

I’m chained again to the life I lead

Societal norms pulled tight with no slack.

In our own ways, I think we all step aside to smoke cigarettes by ourselves. None of us want to fit exactly into the box the world tries to tell us we fit into, or at least I don’t. I want to be unexpected. I want to be change. I want to be the difference. I want girls to look at me as the New Woman. The woman that is carelessly myself. Still kind, genuine, compassionate, empathetic and soft but also hard, determined, opinionated and fearless. The world tries to tell us there is only one way we can exist, but we are three-dimensional people. We weren’t made to be only housewives or corporate men; we were made

to be happy. The old woman cared only about the opinion of the world and how to serve it. The New Woman cares about her own opinion, and probably the opinion of her friends, let’s be real, but it doesn’t control her. She still thinks of herself and pursues joy over everything. Pursue what makes your heart soar and even if that is to be the tradi - tional woman, then be her, but be her un - apologetically. Don’t be the woman in the window.

LEARNING TO LIVE AGAINST SOCIETAL NORMS

Photos by Loren Rogers

Styling by Abby Haraway and Maggie Levy

Layout by Katie Wilson

Models: Riley Kirkman, Erin Kistler, Kendall Lanman, Hannah Wyneken, Tasia England

R

OMANT ICIZING YOUR LIFE

Learn how to find the beauty in every aspect of your life.

By Emily McCaslin

Photos by Loren Rogers

Stlyed by Logan Howard & Jordan Reimer

Layout by Ruby Van De Steeg

Model: Jordan Reimer

Life is a Beautiful thing.Sure, life can be hard sometimes, but that shouldn’t take away the beauty of it. Life is a gift, and we should live it to the fullest when we can.

To romanticize means to make something seem better than it really is. We go through many struggles making it seem impossible at times to be positive, but by taking control of your life, you can create something truly beautiful and meaningful to you. Here’s some strategies to help along the way.

It’s all about mindset. If you constantly live life thinking it’s an awful thing, then natural -

ly you’re going to have a negative connotation associated with it. On the contrary, if you live life thinking about how it’s an opportunity to accomplish great things, meet great people and make great memories, then you will start to love life for what it really is.

The great thing is, you have the ability to create your life how you want it. You can create a life that’s exciting to live.

One great way to live life positively is to put into perspective that some times worries aren’t that serious. We spend so much time worrying about things that can’t be controlled, when sometimes we just need

to let them go and realize that there are still good things to look forward to. If you respond with a situation thinking that it is not that serious, then you can train your mind to worry less and focus on the good things rather than the bad.

Worrying about a situation won’t help it change in the end, so it is better to give up worrying about them instead of dwelling in them.

Obviously, there are moments in life where you can’t use this method, but it’s good for the small worries that intrude the brain.

Another tip is to not be afraid to put yourself out there. You have the abil -

ity to make your dreams come true and you are the only one who can get you there. Work hard for what you believe in, and then you will be able to accomplish more than you could’ve imagined. It’s okay to make mistakes along the way, that’s how you grow and learn.

Always remember to treat yourself right too. Taking care of yourself and setting aside time

for breaks is very important. If you don’t take time for yourself, then you could get burnt out and stressed easier.

To go along with that, it is crucial that you use time to treat yourself. Reward yourself for all the good things you are doing. Buy yourself that new shirt for getting that job promotion or treat yourself to some ice cream for getting a good grade on a test.

This will make your accomplishments sweeter.

Some days it may seem harder to accomplish things. Some days it may even be hard to get out of bed, and that’s okay. Be kind to yourself and practice giving grace. You can’t fill other people’s cups without first filling yours. It is okay to not be 100% all the time.

Last but not least, dream big. Create big goals for yourself because if you have the right mindset, then nothing is too out of reach.

There’s going to be people in your life that try and tear you down, but remember your worth. Surround yourself with people who encourage you and that you enjoy being around.

This may seem out of reach for many people, but if you take small steps every day creating your ideal life, then it won’t seem so far.

SET changes”

“Start living your life how you want and see how your MIND

Clean Slate

The importance of starting fresh every now and again

Oftentimes, we forget to take a breath. That’s no surprise— life can be pretty relentless. The work piles up, the drama has new developments, you need to go to the grocery store again and oh, that’s right, you forgot to send that email. You want to hang out with your friends, but you all have conflicting schedules. You haven’t gotten eight hours of sleep in weeks. When you do have a moment to rest, all you want to do is just that. Rest. However, rest isn’t always all that you need. Sometimes, a clean slate can help out in ways you wouldn’t expect. Your environment can have a big impact on your mood and stress levels. Even just making your bed can help you feel more put together. Here are a few ways you can help yourself take a breath and reset before taking on another week. Organize your workspace! It’s difficult to focus on work when your desk is cluttered. Take a moment and rearrange the pens and papers that may be strewn about. Stack your books properly and get rid of the sticky note reminders you don’t need anymore. Spending

just a few minutes cleaning up your workspace will prepare you for the week ahead. Light a candle or burn some incense! Scents like lavender or jasmine can help reduce anxiety and will leave your home smelling clean. Choose a variety of scents to keep things fresh and interesting. You could easily work this into your morning or nighttime routine to help you unwind on a daily basis. Do a full skincare routine! It’s hard to dedicate a lot of time to skincare during the busier weeks. A lot of people find skincare calming—do a face mask, use some rose water, apply a bunch of toners and moisturizers. Spend some time finding a routine that works for you and use it to refresh your skin and your mind.Make a new playlist! It’s a simple, fun task to focus your mind on for a little while. Plus, you’ll have a new set of tunes to keep you going. Wash your bedding! I know, it’s annoying, but it has to be done and can make a world of difference in your mood. There’s no better feeling than fresh, clean bedsheets, especially after a tough day. Bake some cookies! If baking stresses you out, maybe don’t work this into your routine, but it can be another simple activity to focus on. You’ll get to enjoy the desserts afterwards, and you could share them with your friends and family. Also, who doesn’t love the smell of freshly baked cookies? Of course, there are several little routines you could implement into your weekend to help you get a fresh start. You just have to find what works for you! Make your weekends a time to relax and reset—

You’ll Thank Yourself For It.

Photos by Loren Rogers

Styling by Anabelle Lindsey, Catie Barrett & Mya Cerda

Layout by Gavin Pendergraff

Model:Nikki Ashrafi

HOw the French New Wave Reset Film A Brief History

by Cooper Carr

The progression and growth of any art form is sure to include dozens of steps forward and sideways. New techniques and styles are always brought about in reaction to whatever is currently popular. Every vogue is followed by another one, sometimes a wildly different one. The history of film is no exception to this rule. The advent of moving pictures with sound, and the invention of colored film are undoubtedly the two most important technological moments and unlocked a world of new possibilities. These things were inevitable and soon became the norm and of course have not been abandoned. In terms of stylistic evolution though, perhaps no movement was as jarring and important as the French New Wave. The New Wave approach was back to basics visually but a leap forward in terms of the language of cinema.

The story goes like this. In the late 1940s or early 1950s, four young men frequented the Cinematheque Francaise in Paris. A full telling of the history is impossible here, but among those men were Jean-Luc Godard and Francois Truffaut. They didn’t know it, but they were soon to become two of the most

influential voices in the history of cinema. Or maybe they did know it. The two became friends, or at least colleagues, and shared the experience of writing for Cahiers du Cinema, where they held no punches as they wrote reviews of films and critiqued the scene as a whole. There was a lot going on that they didn’t like. They had such strong feelings that it was only a matter of time before they started making movies of their own. They started by clearing away all the clutter and extravagance they didn’t need.

Godard and Truffaut’s debut tries, A bout de souffle (Breathless) and Les Quatre Cents Coups (The 400 Blows) respectively, were revelations. Breathless was unlike anything that had been seen before. It signaled the arrival of techniques that would be used for years to come. The style was perfect in its expression of ideas, and also necessary, because the young auteurs did not have much money with which to make their movies. Godard used jump cuts so they would go through less film. He let his actors improvise because he didn’t have the time to sit around writing. He used the camera as his pen be -

cause he had so much to say. A decade earlier, a young critic named Alexandre Astruc had written an essay about the evolution of film. In it, he said this:

“Cinema is quite simply becoming a means of expression… After having been successively a fair-ground attraction, an amusement analogous to boulevard theatre, or a means of preserving the images of an era, it is gradually becoming a language.”

In 1960, Godard proved Astruc’s claims. Throughout the 60’s, he packed his thoughts and ideas into film after film. He used the screen to share his thoughts on government, philosophy, literature and more. He left very little on the screen that could distract from the ethos. At times, even the use of actors was a thin veil. One could picture Godard hunched over a typewriter, cigarette hanging from his lips, pounding out the words Jean-Paul Belmondo or Anna Karina was delivering. This was new, and it is still with us today in the movies of select writers and directors–those who are allowed to do it.

Truffaut’s debut embodied another aspect of the New Wave. Released in 1959, The 400 Blows was an intensely personal examination of his own childhood. It

was likely more interesting to Truffaut himself than it was to anyone else. It is entertaining, but that’s not the point. It is a movie made for the maker. If you could picture Godard at his typewriter, then you could picture Truffaut sitting in the theater watching his own work, holding back tears. As time went on and the artists gained attention, they didn’t stray from the things that had led them to filmmaking. Godard kept making his characters sound out the thoughts in his own head. Truffaut continued making movies about his own life, releasing four more movies over the next twenty years that combine with The 400 Blows to comprise the Antoine Doinel series.

Over the course of the ‘60s and ‘70s, Godard and Truffaut were joined in their efforts by the likes of Eric Rohmer, Louis Malle, Jacques Rivette, Agnes Varda and others. To watch a New Wave film today is to travel back in time. The commentary contained often means nothing to the modern viewer. The references may fall on deaf ears. But some ideas and themes are timeless, and the films are often stunning in the simplicity with which they present those ideas. Watching your first New Wave movie could reset your palate for film, just as the slate was wiped clean by the directors in the ‘60s, and the future was better for it.

Photos by Rylee Keesee

Styled by Hannah Schob, Abigail Burnham

Layout by Hadley Waldren

Models: Henry Ramsey, Hannah Schob, Abigail Burnham

Modmuze Editoral Staff