Final Project on Gyaru!

When the time for our project began to lurk towards us this semester, my initial reaction was panic.  There are many interesting things from Japan that Americans are aware of, especially many products from Japan, but I wanted to do a project that was different and interested me at the same time.  One day I came across a Tumblr blog about gyaru. I had always seen pictures of these girls adorned with thick makeup, styled hair, and trendy clothes. Since I had a prior interest in makeup and hair, I found that this look and culture drew me in. This is why for my final project I decided to study gyaru fashion subculture.  This is a brief video posted on how to be gyaru.

For many years now, Japan has been known for their wide array of different fashion. Many fashion blogs are popular for their “Japanese Street Fashion” blogs and celebrities such as Katy Perry, Gwen Stefani, and Lady Gaga have all been seen with dressed in clothes and makeup with Japanese influence and vice versa. The fashion conscious movement in Japan has evolved into many different subcultures in the cities, creating many different districts known for certain styles. For instance in the Shibuya district, located in Tokyo, gyaru is a very prominent style that young women that has slowly influenced others, such as men and married women, dress in. Shibuya’s main style is “ero kawaii” or erotic and cute. gyaru, the Japanese transliteration for the word "gal" is one of the popular styles that have been garnering interest not only in Japan but throughout other Asian countries and is slowly moving towards the West as well [8].

Celebrities with Japanese influence

As mentioned before, Japanese fashion is not just limited to gyaru, but there are many different fashion subcultures that have grown along with gyaru.  Within 60 years Japanese fashion evolved greatly from the more traditional styles of Japanese clothing.  The roots of gyaru began in the 70s when consumerism grew due to the introduction of designer brands. The term gyaru was coined in 1972 in a Wrangler jeans ad, but it wasn't until 1979 where it was prominently mentioned in a Sawada Kenji song ("Oh! Gyaru") that people began using it [1]. Consumerism hit its peak in the 1980s and Japan hit a bubble economy [9].  Gyaru cannot be labeled as one specific look. The reason being that there are many different subcategories of gyaru, and along with these subcategories people often mix and match different style, so often it is really hard to categorize specifically. There is no gyaru look that is really set in stone. The easiest way to identify a gyaru girl is if they have heavy makeup and are dressed in a trendy manner. Although many often seem to label the type of clothing and makeup as western mimicry, Japan has taken the little bit of influence that they received from the West and transformed it into their own unique brand of style.

Since there are so many subcategories of gyaru, I will only go over the prominent and or more controversial and distinct styles that were/are worn by gyaru girls. The youth that follow these trends are often seen to be misfits and seen as a form of youth rebellion. Japan had always been more of a patriarchal society. Before Western influence, women were all expected to act and dress in their given roles. It was not until 1945-1960s after the Second World War that Japanese people become more influenced by American culture and formed tribes called “zoku” and members of these different tribes wore more deviant styles are acted out [8]. We will be looking at some of the history of how these girls’ subcultures were produced as well to understand the public perception. So let us get started.

First, I will be looking at B-gyaru girls. People often inaccurately label Baika, Bosozoku, and B-gals altogether with B-gyaru, but they are two distinct categories. Often, the “B” in B-gyaru is mistakenly known to mean “black” because of these girls’ tan skin color and their tendency to wear more urban style dress and hairstyles. However, unlike the derogatory nature of meaning, people often say that the “B” in B-gyaru actually comes from the “B” in R&B. The reason is because these girls dress like the hip hop artist that are predominantly of African American descent.  These girls do go for a more street style look but the amount of influence varies. Another way that they usually distinguish themselves is often, most B-gyaru girls get real tans whereas other forms of gyaru use makeup and artificial tans to achieve their look. There is a feminine element in all the gyaru styles, so even this somewhat tougher look has a very womanly take. These girls try to go for a very nonchalant and blasé attitude, so when they pose for cameras, often they are seen posing with calm and confident poses. Baika, Bosozoku, or B-gals are also somewhat similar to B-gyaru and wear hip hop style clothing, but are more inclined towards biker chic and more of a punk influence in their wardrobe. These girls can also have influences from Yanki (Yankee) as well as miruteri (military) because they all have similar elements and articles of clothing that are popular within the subculture.

B-gal with head phone, B-gal modeling clothes, baika gals

The next culture I looked at was Hime gyaru. It literally means “princess gal”. These girls can be identified easily because they dress in a very princess-esque and girly manner. Their clothes are usually white or pink and they dye their hair a range of blond to brown. As seen in the picture below, these girls often times tend to have very garish hairstyle adorned with many accessories such as bows and roses to achieve that lovely princess look they are opting for (as seen in the picture below).  The over teased hair can either be out of their own hair or they can buy wigs and extensions.  The big hair and big accessories help the girls achieve a tiny looking face.  Depending on the preference of the person, they can try to go for a more sophisticated and mature hime look or a cuter and more infantile version of the look. This look is often mistaken as Lolita, but there are very interestingly similar but actually have very different aspects and lifestyles.

Hime gyaru girl with many hair accessories and big hair 

Wedding dress adorned with roses

Both styles can be similar, but most people often do not realize there are many different subcategories of Lolita. The styles that people often mistaken as Lolita are: sweet Lolita or ama-loli, some classic Lolita, and Hime Lolita. Hime Lolita is often credited to find its influences from hime gyaru. Lookwise, hime gyaru and the styles of Lolita mentioned do look very similar. Both styles are very feminine and adorned with accessories that look “princess-y”. However, there are many differences that make these subcultures distinct. The clothes, makeup, and accessories of this culture have slightly different styles; loli is more inclined towards rococo, Romantic and Victorian styles and are more cute and childish. Hime is more modern and dramatic.  Lolita style also consists of lots of layers and it is important to cover up. They want to achieve that “cupcake” shape by wearing petticoats and bell skirts.  While gyaru girls tend to be more flashy, sexy, and outgoing, surprisingly Lolita girls are not like that (which may be surprising based on their name). Even if “Lolita” may act as a signifier and signify the idea “sex”, according to Miller, Japan has “loanwords” in the language where English words are adopted and made into pseudo-Anglicisms. These are often taken as “wasei-eigo” or “gairaigo”.

The reason I brought this point up is because “Lolita” does not signify what it signifies in the West as it does in the East. “Lolita” may direct the mind to the Lolita complex and signify sex; the east perceives it more as a group of confused or lost young women and their rejection of adulthood. Or as Evers and Macias puts it, “arty girls in the grips of complicated relationships with gender, femininity, and the painful process of growing up.” [7]. Therefore because of these qualities in Loli girls, they tend to be more child-like and have a more vulnerable and mysterious appearance. The gyaru are much flashier and are more seen as socialites. Looking at the photos of gyaru and loli girls, one can see that the gyaru girls pose very confidently and looks directly at the camera, whereas the loli girls pose in a very demure manner and tend to pose with a look of curiosity or completely avert their gazes. If they do pose for pictures, it is in a very bashful way. As Macias stated, “The Lolita look evolved out of the Japanese underground scene. The Hime Gals (bless them) seem to have scant in their pretty little heads but the desire to play dress-up and look like a million bucks. If both the Hime Gals and the Lolitas seem to belong together in the same rococo painting, it’s purely a weird accident of parallel evolution.” [7]  In the picture below, it may be hard to distinguish the gyaru and loli girls, but if you look closely, you can tell that the Gyaru girls are wearing all brand names and dressed more chicly.  The loli girls look more childlike and are all not looking at the camera.  They are also dressed in more of a Victorian style.  Also hime gyaru girls usually wear heels and loli girls never do.

Himer gyaru girls trying to look cute

Lolita girls

Another form of gyaru, possibly the most easily identifiable style of gyaru is kôkôsei gyaru (or kogal for short). Often, the terms “gyaru” and “kogyaru” are used interchangeably. These girls are the ones that may actually fuel the Lolita fantasy of Japanese men. Kogal means “high school gal” and their look is distinctive. They appear to be high school girls with a darker skin tone and lighter hair color. They choose this style to go against school standards. They wear school uniforms and an automatic and definite trait will be them wearing loose socks.

Kogal girls wearing signature loose socks

 This look was popularized by a popstar named Namie Amuro, who promoted this look. Kogals are seen as conspicuous consumers and the general public views them as spoiled little girls who waste their parents’ money. Traditionalist and/or critics of this culture view these girls as mirroring the spiritual emptiness in modern Japanese life. Another reason for their public persecution may be the numerous cases of enjo-kōsai.   Enjo-kōsai means “assisted or compensated dating” and it is a practice where older men give money and/or gifts to women for escorting them or sexual favors. On the 1996 issue of Gendai Weekly, the words “The old man is nothing but a purse” were printed and stunned the nation. Those words were expressed by an eighth-grade girl who made $4,000 a month “meeting” middle-aged [4]. Because of cases like this, people often make many witticisms and wisecracks about their socks. Some people would say loose socks are equivalent to loose sex. According to Yonehara Yasumasa (the founder of egg magazine), the first kogal were delinquent private school students with rich delinquent boyfriends. The boys were in gangs that cruised around Shibuya, and they were called chiimaa (teamer). These adolescents were infamous for mugging and intimidating weak middle aged men. What is somewhat ironic is that most kogals were relatively well off and only did this out of boredom and to buy more things [2]. Unlike the Lolita girls, these girls were ready to grow up, so they began to rebel by dating older men and eroticizing their appearance. They tanned their skin to appear healthier and more “current”. These girls, as seen in the photos, want to be seen as objects of desire and want to look sexy while at the same time maintaining their youthful appearance by acting more cutesy. They act the way they want to in public, being rambunctious and outgoing. There was another style from kogal that evolved after kogal had peaked in 1999, and that style is ganguro.

Ganguro girl picking her nose

Looking at ganguro (which means black face), one can see that it is an exaggeration of Kogal. At first glance, it may be puzzling to some why these girls dress the way they do. The melted brown foundation they put on their faces, the white pearly makeup that is streaked on top of their features to bring out what the brown washed out, all of these aspects of ganguro terrified the male dominated media. These girls are deemed very unladylike and would often pick their noses, burp, and fart in public for all to see.
 As stated on Neojaponisme.com, “The extreme character of the kogal movement post-’99 immediately displaced mainstream society’s original feelings of curiosity and lust with something new: massive antagonism” [2]. Calling them “yamamba” or witches, these girls were destroyed by the “male press” or oyaji zasshi. In Bad Girls of Japan, the essay “Black Faces, Witches, and Racism against Girls” even a Japanese female stated, “In all honesty, I have seen very few girls sporting the style that brings me even close to thinking, ‘Without that makeup, she must be a beauty, what a waste’ ”[6]. In Bad girls, it stated that commentary on the girls often “entwined with a derogatory and pseudo-Darwinian commentary about dark-skinned girls” [6]. However, if one were to look at a ganguro girl’s background, the way they dress may be a little bit more comprehensible. These girls come from a lower socioeconomic class, so often they do not have college aspirations. People also state that many of these girls tend to be less cute than kogal girls, so perhaps the ganguro look offered them an escape and bond with other girls with similar struggles. According to Dick Hebdige, “Girls have invented their own uniforms in order to mark themselves in opposition to the values of mainstream society. But she is angered that, ‘society just merrily misinterprets [the look] as a form of animal coloring or tribal decoration’ [10].

Ganguro girls

Gyaru culture is something that is so simple, but has greatly affected Japanese society.  Although compared to the rise in the late 1990s and early 2000s there may be less gyaru girls, there are still plenty out there showing themselves.  Some have added changes to their style and borrowed different style elements to create new subcategories.  This is a picture of gyaru mamas.  These are young woman who have transitioned into motherhood and instead of retiring their gyaru fashion, they choose to continue their lifestyle, embellishing their babies' strollers with trendy prints and still managing to look fierce [5].  Seeing the photos of these women, you can see that they still pose in a very calm and confident manner.

Gyaru mamas 

Not only women, but this fashion movement influenced some men to dress in this manner.  They are called gyaru-o (male gyaru).  The men tanned their skin and bleached their hair.  They would also where some forms of makeup (skin, eye, and nails).  Often, they style them in fashion mullets.  Many of these men were looked down upon because the "normal" men would often make fun of them for their effeminacy[6].  

Gyaru-o in a photobooth

Since more and more Japanese women prefer being pale, a new genre of gyaru called "shiro gyaru" (porcelain gal) or "white gyaru" has become more popular[5].  They take the same style as gyaru girls, but keep their skin white.  These girls have been appealing to the masses because they have the beautiful skin, but they also have the glamour and trendy element of gyaru girls.  These girls are the ones that have been appealing to the other Asian countries, such as China, Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, etc.  Another look that goes really well with shiro gyaru is Koakuma Ageha (which means "little devil"), which got popular in c.2008 [1].     

Shiro gyaru girl looking ero kawaii, girl looking innocent

The influence has not only spread to Asian countries, but has moved towards the West, thanks to social media outlets such as Youtube and Tumblr.  The interesting mix of "sex" and "cute" are appealing to the West.  Also, the makeup techniques allow for a dramatic eye look, but due to the lack of color and neutral colors, this look is flexible and can go with both night and day looks.  These foreigners are called gaijin gyaru (foreigner gyaru)[5]. 

Gaijin gyaru from America

  After seeing so many images of Gyaru girls, one may wonder why these girls continue to do this look.  There is so much money, effort,  and time that goes into this look.  As seen with ganguro girls, not a lot of them are considered attractive.  So one may wonder why they go through with this culture.  Although the number of gyaru girls have declined since the early 2000s, the there are still hardcore gyaru girls that continue this look after growing up.  The look is something that gives these girls a sense of identity in the busy and tumultuous city.  It is something that helps them stand out among the "normal" people and also meet people of similar interests and socioeconomic backgrounds.  Even if a look is considered to be, in general, "weird", standing with your friends that are dressed the same gives you confidence and helps you not care about what other say.  These girls are so closely knit that they even have their own words and text that they use called gyaru moji [3].  This look exists because it is a way for young women who want to grow up to express their desire with the way they look during that ambiguous transition.  The reason it may stay popular within the Japanese fashion world may be its flexibility and ability to modify to the current trends.  

Sources:

1. http://neojaponisme.com/2012/02/28/the-history-of-the-gyaru-part-one/

2. http://neojaponisme.com/2007/01/23/the-misanthropology-of-late-stage-kogal/

3. http://209.68.50.46/nakamura/courses/japan/readings/NYT_971019.pdf

4. http://www.chroniclebooks.com/landing-pages/Chronicle/excerpt/0811856909-e1.html

5. http://gal-handbook.livejournal.com/4657.html

6. http://www.scribd.com/doc/53066714/Bad-Girls-of-Japan (Bad Girls of Japan)

7. Japanese School Girl Inferno:Tokyo Teen Fashion Subculture Handbook, by Izumi Evers

8. http://uconline.ursinus.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-298582-dt-content-rid-164089_1/courses/BB30926/Japanese%20Fashion%20Subcultures.pdf

9. http://uconline.ursinus.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-298582-dt-content-rid-164090_1/courses/BB30926/Japanese%20Street%20Style.pdf

10. http://uconline.ursinus.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-299121-dt-content-rid-173523_1/courses/BB30926/Hebdige%20Subculture%20%28excerpt%29.pdf