1960s Fashion and Fluxus: How the avant-garde movement disrupted style
Fluxus blurred the lines between art and life in the 1960s. Its avant-garde, anti-fashion influence shapes contemporary runway, Margiela, Demna, and Diesel’s inclusive shows
The Fluxus Movement in the 1960s: How Avant-Garde Art Redefined Fashion
Coperni’s spray-on dress and Margiela’s anonymity both reflect the attitudes rooted in this influential artistic movement of the 1960s. Fluxus, which means flow, blurred the boundaries between art and life through its Dadaist, fragmented, and ephemeral approach – one that is still evident in some of today’s most disruptive designers and provocative fashion collections.
“For a while, Fluxus was everywhere. There were festivals no one attended, performances no one saw, promises of money that never came, revolutions that never happened. When Ono and John Lennon held their bed-ins, that was the nearest Fluxus got to worldwide fame” – Art critic Adrian Searle, The Guardian
Fashion Designers Channeling Fluxus: From Coperni to Balenciaga
Anarchy, paradox and Dadaism intertwine within Fluxus, one of the most mysterious, ambiguous and ephemeral artistic movements to emerge in the 1960s, which continues to resonate as an anti-fashion concept. With its ironic and subversive approach, contemporary fashion sometimes goes full Fluxus.
Think of Coperni’s spray-on dress for Bella Hadid at the Spring/Summer 2023 Paris Fashion Week (link); the radical anonymity of Martin Margiela; Balenciaga’s thousand-dollar tape bracelet by Demna; Gucci’s playful “Guccy” logo under Alessandro Michele; or Diesel’s authentic fake-counterfeit “Deisel” jeans sold for $20 in a New York shop as a prank. All these examples capture the true spirit of the Fluxus movement.
Dress sprayed onto model on Coperni runway at Paris Fashion Week 2023
The 1960s Cultural Revolution and the Birth of Fluxus
It is no coincidence that Fluxus originated in the 1960s, a decade that challenged and transformed cultural conventions. This era of revolution and resistance created an ideal environment for asserting the elusive essence of art.
Today, claiming that “art could be anything” may seem obvious, but in the 1960s it was a profoundly destabilising concept. Many Fluxus artists were not trained artists at all; they included musicians, freethinkers, graphic designers with nine-to-five jobs, and even former architects, such as the movement’s founder, George Maciunas.
Fluxus Pioneers of the 60s: From Yoko Ono to John Cage
Musicians John Cage and La Monte Young, filmmaker Jonas Mekas, and artists and intellectuals like Ray Johnson and Yoko Ono were all seduced by this chaotic and disruptive concept.
Yoko Ono, in particular, was drawn to the interdisciplinary, forward-thinking ethos of Fluxus. Although she engaged with the movement, she chose not to formally identify as a part of it, which perfectly embodies the spirit of Fluxus.
Cut Piece by Yoko Ono: The Fluxus Performance That Changed Art Forever
Yoko Ono’s Fluxus work is among the most striking of her career, even predating her relationship with John Lennon. In 1965, a year before they met, she created Cut Piece, a performance art piece that was filmed by American documentarians Albert and David Maysles.
In “Cut Piece,” spectators were invited to cut away pieces of her clothing while she sat motionless on stage. This interactive engagement of the audience challenged the traditional notion of passive spectatorship and conveyed a powerful social message.
Yoko Ono "Cut Piece", filmed by Albert and David Maysles
Fluxus Principles and Their Legacy in Contemporary Fashion
At the core of Fluxus was an anti-elitist ethos: they rejected the idea that museums and art critics should determine the value of a work of art. By making their work accessible to the general public, they mocked the exclusivity of “high art”.
Similarly, throughout fashion history, disruptive designers have often mocked haute couture with ironic and self-deprecating stylistic choices. They have incorporated playful or absurd items into their collections, blended high and low references, challenged silhouettes, and mirrored the irreverent spirit of Fluxus.
Martin Margiela’s Anonymity: A Fluxus-Inspired Fashion Statement
Fluxus, in turn, rejected the cult of the artist’s ego, often signing works simply as “Fluxus”. Martin Margiela, with his cult of anonymity and blank-slate aesthetic, epitomises this approach, shifting the focus from the creator and onto the garment.
Continuing this philosophy, the brand has reinforced its identity by concealing the faces of models, a practice that has continued under creative director Glenn Martens and includes covering the faces of celebrity endorsers and potentially even customers.
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Maison Margiela Artisanal 2025 Collection
Fluxus Happenings and Today’s Fashion Shows: From Miu Miu to Diesel
Just like the original Fluxus “happenings” — live artistic performances involving the audience — some contemporary fashion brands embrace a similar ethos. For example, Miu Miu invited Dr Qin Huilan, one of its most loyal clients, to walk the Autumn/Winter 2024 runway. In true Fluxus spirit, she emphasised that her action was meant to prove that age is no barrier to stepping onto the catwalk.
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Fashion shows, once reserved for intellectuals and a select few, have now become mainstream entertainment, streamed to billions via social media. Their once-sacred aura has been “fluxed” out and brought into the public sphere in a spectacular, Fluxus-like fashion. Notably, inclusive brands like Diesel have recently opened their shows to the wider community—fostering democracy rather than privilege.
From Fluxkits to Fashion Collaborations: Making Art and Style Accessible
The Fluxkit, first announced in June 1964 in the fourth Fluxus newspaper, “Fluxus cc fiVe ThReE”, is a curated collection of multiples and printed items created by artists associated with Maciunas and contributors to Fluxus events since 1962...
Fluxus Legacy: How Avant-Garde Art Continues to Shape Anti-Fashion
Fluxus is remembered as an experimental art movement that sought to snatch art from the hands of the elite. Yet at the same time, it was initiated by an intellectual élite whose radical ideas were never fully embraced by the mainstream or entirely understood by art critics...
Gaia Giordani
Editor, Generative AI Explorer and New Media Communication Expert