Rodeo Wear on the Runway; Cowboy Couture
Birch Klomparens
Creative by
Birch & Lillian
In the last decade, western styles - both vintage and contemporary - have made their mark on runways and at fashion weeks, and western wear has crept into day-to-day fashion everywhere. “Rodeowear” is no longer just for cowboys in the wild west: Isabel Marant’s line at Paris fashion week in Spring of 2021 was chock-full of cowboy boots and quintessential western chain-stitching embroidery, YSL has been pushing the leather fringe jacket since 2015, and cowboy hats are everywhere! Brands like Dôen and Ganni have modernized the classic vintage Ralph Lauren duster coats, prairie blouses, and long dresses. Nili Lotan’s recent lines are characterized by sophisticated pearl-snap collared shirts - a style even Zimmermann, a brand known for loose florals and delicate designs, has been experimenting with. In my hometown in Wyoming, attending the rodeo has become one of the major fashion events of the summer, with everyone sporting boots, a hat, and the most quasi-applicable western attire they can dig out of their closets. (See: Kendall Jenner at said rodeo this summer)
But does western wear truly have a place in the world of high fashion? Or rather, does high fashion have a place for adopting typically western looks? Much of western fashion was born from necessity and practicality, not from a desire for style. Cowboy boots were made for riding horses and cowboy hats for protection from the hot western sun. Thick leather jackets, duster coats, and long prairie dresses were worn for warmth in cold weather and as barriers against dusty wind. Fashion evolution in the West was spurred by a need for defense against harsh conditions, and clothing functioned more as a tool and a resource than the role it plays today, representing the cultural importance of resiliency, toughness, and self-sufficiency. Does this mean that integrating western styles today romanticizes a life that was (and in some cases still is) truly filled with hardship and strife? The West represented in fashion easily overlooks the hardships of ranch life, such as relentless manual labor, extreme market variability, and unreliable financial stability at the mercy of increasing drought and fire levels brought on by climate change. Does the incorporation of western styles into contemporary couture devalue these legitimate struggles? Could it even be considered a form of cultural appropriation?
Here’s my take— unlike the days of the wild west, clothing, and fashion today hold importance that goes beyond functionality. Fashion exists as an outlet of self-expression, meant to evolve in tandem with the people it serves, and western fashion has certainly evolved, taking on two distinct forms in the pursuit of both style and functionality. One example of this is the difference between cowboy boots made for work and those made for fashion. Work boots today have a lower boot shaft and shorter heel height than boots worn on the runway. Like the purpose of the western style, the West has changed too - gone are the days of single homesteads in unforgiving climates and horses as the only form of transportation. Though life as a rancher in the West is still deeply challenging for many today, the present-day issues cannot be solved by a warm leather jacket or thick boots.
As far as the question of cultural appropriation goes, I don’t think it’s possible to appropriate white western culture, which was in large part stolen and appropriated from Indigenous peoples during the colonization of the West. The origins of most classic western looks and to whom these styles should truly belong is another discussion entirely. For the purposes of this article, however, I think the incorporation of western styles gives new life to the distinctive look of the old West and appreciates the cultural significance of that time period and lifestyle.
Today, much of the West is inhabited by individuals who don’t fit the bill of stereotypical cowboys (myself included), and living in the West means something different than what it used to. Though die-hard westerners will never give up their boots and hats, these items exist more as cultural motifs of what it means to live in the West. The world of high fashion may not embody the kind of resiliency and toughness that was needed to survive in the old west, but both the fashion and function sides of western style share common ground in valuing bravery, boldness, and independence.
.jpg)