episode 7: what defines good taste?
Taking a look at America's tackiness and economic state, have we reached the point of no return?
Following the dreaded Venetian nuptials and Vogue cover feature of Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez (pause for barf break), NYT published an opinion essay titled “The Bezos-Sánchez Wedding and the Triumph of Tacky.” No piece could’ve spoken to my soul more in that moment.
It is widely theorized that economic conditions have a strong impact on micro and macro fashion trends. It’s worth noting that a downturn not only means less disposable income for the masses, but also more for the ultra-wealthy—which sometimes comes with a sense of freedom from any sort of norms, including taste. Not that Americans were so bound by taste to begin with.
It could also be that, considering we are basically living back in the ’80s right now in almost every way, Jeff Bezos might simply be an all-powerful Gordon Gecko, driving taste in the larger culture out the window in favor of “stimulating the economy.”
Writes fashion industry commentator Amy Odell, “The luxury industry—which faces its first slowdown in 15 years, according to a recent study—has economic interest in embracing Ms. Sánchez, who represents the wealthy Very Important Clients who make up 2 percent of luxury customers and 40 percent of sales. ‘The customer driving global luxury is quite tacky in a lot of cases, and no one really admits it,’ an unnamed fashion investor told The Cut for a 2024 article about this crucial group of shoppers. V.I.C.s are always looking for a reason to get decked out in their designer finest, social norms and sensitivities be damned, and Ms. Sánchez seems to embody the idea that if you’re rich enough, you may as well.”
Odell notes that Ivana Trump was once dubbed “too tacky” by Anna Wintour herself—but can the American profit motive now just be too strong to hold onto taste as a core value, even for Vogue? (Conspiracy theories abound regarding Anna’s timing in stepping down from her EIC position.)
If so, we can deduce that a certain level of both wealth and income equality is required for good taste to be common, or at least commonly expressed. (Talent itself knows no economic, social, or geographical boundaries, and so much of it is instinct.) Off-hand I’d say this theory makes sense—I mean, look at Scandinavia. Someone will have to figure out whether this has legs!
The essence of maintaining taste and rejecting tackiness is about control. More specifically, restraint. We all know Coco Chanel’s famous rule about taking one item off before you leave the house—a far cry from the styling of most dipshit Chanel wearers today.
Restraint is a major common denominator of “good-taste practitioners” everywhere, second only to perspective. Like with the written word, poor editing is the death knell. An essay, novel, or speech is more likely to be ruined by too much left in than too much taken out. Same goes for negative space in art or decorating—as soon as the space gets too crowded, the focal point is lost and it’s all a blur. Ornament is only as powerful as the lack of ornament that surrounds it. This is why excess is bad, unless you can control it. Which most cannot. This leads the typical privileged American bride to the conclusion, “Why have one beautiful and setting-appropriate wedding dress when I can have 3 ugly ones?”
Restraint is a major common denominator of “good-taste practitioners” everywhere, second only to perspective. . . Ornament is only as powerful as the lack of ornament that surrounds it.
Of course, there are those with great taste who are decidedly maximalist, but they know how to execute this vision in a way that reads Dolce&Gabbana couture rather than Betsey Johnson or one of the Kardashians. Good examples of this throughout history: Takashi Murakami, Michaelangelo, Béatrice de Rothschild, Donatella Versace, Martyn Lawrence Bullard, Lori Hirshleifer, and Diane von Furstenberg.
On one of my favorite podcasts, Lady Journey, a discussion about art and the wealthy led to a paradox: “Rich people’s taste in art is just letting people know you’re rich,” riffs comic Katie Hannigan. It’s true—buying a Picasso is almost the same idea (although a a notch less absurd) as buying a Birkin—you may well know nothing about it or even truly like it, but you know it’s an investment and a signal—and will get people talking. And if it’s this sort of in-the-club acceptance you seek, it’s much easier to go the Birkin route. Since good taste is more rare and less obtainable than a specific item, it’s less likely that you’ll gain the same group acceptance you will from a Birkin, because it’s less likely that you’ll find a group of peers who have good taste themselves. But the Birkin, we all recognize.
This idea begs a larger question about taste. Most people define it as a cultivated “point of view.“ I think this is necessary but not sufficient.
Taste is largely intangible but you know it when you see it. The person with good taste is consistent. They are deliberate. They understand proportion. They know quality. They can execute a clear vision. They edit. They are confident in their choices. They are not imitating, but rather, taking inspiration from history; but if they are imitating, they do it well. They have strong instincts. They are price- and label-agnostic (mostly). They are discerning. They think about anything as part of a whole. They are knowledgeable not only about art and design but about culture and history. They are wary of trends (or worse, fads) and only incorporate if they feel it’s appropriate. They make anything elegant. If they wear something old, it just feels vintage rather than dated. And finally, they innovate.
Excluding designers themselves, there are a handful of public figures who really have demonstrated what it is to have taste: Jenny Walton, Lauren Santo Domingo, Waris Ahluwalia, Leila Kashanipour, Yumi Shin, Iris Apfel, Chloé Sévigny, Whitney Robinson, Danielle Cohen (yes, more than her sister), Rachel Zoe, Nate Berkus, Pharrell Williams, Linda Fargo, Chiara Ferragni, Jill Kargman, Dorinda Medley, Nina Garcia, Queen Rania, Carine Roitfeld, Madison Blank, Isaac Mizrahi, and Jenna Lyons. (I’ll skip over the newly disgraced Wintour, whom, despite her talents, I find sartorially over-appreciated.)
And then there are the people in your everyday life, or strangers strolling down Fifth Avenue, who effortlessly inspire us with their originality and vision, living for themselves by presenting to the world their talents and their confidence—after all, you have to believe it’s important enough to have things (and yourself) look amazing in order to make it happen. As for America, it’s no secret that our confidence is gone.