It's that time of year once again. In what seemed like a blur, social media was buzzing with an endless stream of tweets, snaps, Facebook posts, and Instagrams as the world turned its eyes on the Empire Polo Club in Indio California for Coachella 2016. I'm sure there are plenty of people--myself included--who don't necessarily know what Coachella is; I, for one, just see photos on Facebook and Instagram counting down the "Ten Best Looks at Coachella" or "You'll Never Believe Who Made Their Coachella Debut Yesterday", but I've never actually seen anything about what Coachella truly is. After looking past all of the celebrity hype and the shallow social media posts, I discovered that Coachella actually has an interesting history.
Starting out as a way to rebel against third party ticket selling companies, the Coachella Valley Arts and Music Festival was a way for both artists and fans to avoid paying an arm and a leg to experience what they loved. The festival began to grow in popularity until it grew from a single concert performance into two full weeks of various music and art related events and entertainment. With all of the social media hype, the true meaning behind Coachella has been lost, but for those who have a deep passion or roots in the world of art, Coachella is certainly something to experience. With people camping on-site for part--or all--of the two weeks, festival-goers are literally living among the art. Not only are people experiencing art in the form of music, but they are seeing sculptures and exhibits from artists from hundreds of different places. But sculpture and music are not the only forms of art at this festival, there is another art form that thrives in the heat of the desert--fashion.
Amongst the dust and dirt and the flashes of multi-colored strobe lights, the hordes of people who flock to the annual Coachella festival are some of the most fashionable (according to some) people of the year. Celebrities, social media moguls, and commoners alike, break the record for some of the weirdest fashion of the year. Desert chic, and what appears to be Mad Max meets Egyptian Mummy, are the market for Coachella fashion. Being an art form in itself, the fashion of Coachella has sparked trends around the world and even prompted H&M to create a Coachella inspired line of clothing for those of us unfortunate enough revel in the actual festivities.
But, another year has come and gone and as Coachella 2016 closes, we are left talking not about the art, but about the shallowness of what the festival has become. What started as a way to bring people together to celebrate the creativity of this world has turned into a two week period of celebrity photoshoots and social media posts. I think that going back to its roots could do Coachella some good--it would make people understand what the festival was all about and respect it for what it's truly supposed to be and not the hot mess that it has become.
