The goth glam trend is taking over runways and TikTok
Our cultural fascination with gothic glam began in the ‘80s, and the niche cult dedicated to all things strange and unusual has emerged from the shadows every decade since.
Currently, Wednesday-core, gothic fairy runway collections and moody makeup are all of the moment.
Goth glam is bold and unapologetic. It’s not subtle. It’s an intentional power move, intended to shock, scare, and intrigue.
What does goth glam look like in 2023?
Jenna Ortega, resurrected Wednesday Addams for Netflix’s Wednesday, and subsequently spent the entire press tour emulating her character’s wardrobe. It goes beyond Wednesday Addams’ iconic lip colour too.
Ortega’s off-screen makeup is just as moody, melancholic and full of woe as Tim Burton’s Wednesday is. At the series premiere in LA, Ortega channelled Burton's iconic aesthetic, and tapped into the gaunt eyes and widow’s shroud synonymous with the bride of Beetlejuice, Lydia Deetz.
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At Paris Fashion Week, Valentino’s Fall 2023 runway show reimagined and deconstructed the concept and formality of ‘black tie’.
Makeup artist’s decorated the pierced faces of models with “one intense line to overcome conventions”.
“Stripping away conformity, graphic liner becomes the ultimate tool of self-expression and celebration,” explained the brand’s Instagram.
Kate and Laura Mulleavy (the sister designer duo behind Rodarte) commissioned a plethora of fairy sketches from their mother to bring their “dream of creating a gothic fairy collection” to life for NYFW.
The result? A cosmic clash of goth glam motifs with psychedelic sensibilities. The makeup was stark; models’ eyes were rimmed in heavy liquid liner and their lips were coated in shades of black and blue.
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Designers ADEAM and Sandy Liang delivered their own interpretations of the goth glam trend, opting for old-world opulence over airs of mysticism and fantasy.
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ADEAM smeared a wine burgundy lipstick onto the faces of its models, while Sandy Liang offered touches of darkness with gauze eye covers and a sheer noir pout.
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Gen Z TikTok creators have blazed their own gothic trail on the platform, and shared a glimpse into their ritualistic application of black eyeliner.
@gothshiloh my everyday trad goth makeup tutorial using a @motetzdam.co’s cosmetics 🖤 full list of products will be on my instagram (@gothshiloh) #goth #tradgoth #gothmakeup #tradgothmakeup #80sgoth ♬ Bela Lugosi's Dead (Official Version) - Bauhaus
@natviolette Replying to @qvacklvrs goth makeup for the win #makeup ♬ original sound - Natalie
This isn’t the first time we’ve spent hours scrolling through TikTok trying to understand a trend. It was our first stop when we wanted to know what fairycore is.
Main image credit: @davestanwell
Briar is the Beauty Editor at BEAUTYcrew. Her 'down for anything' attitude has resulted in more than a handful of hair transformations, and she doesn't mind being used as a guinea pig for the industry's most unusual products and treatments. Her work has also appeared on Refinery29, Girlfriend and beautyheaven.
