From invisibility to discreet appearance: a study on old age and fashion in Claudia magazine (1997-2010)

Abstract

The present article has the general objective of analyzing the representation of old age in the fashion contents of Claudia magazine, seeking to reveal how they occur and what are the mechanisms used by the periodical in the construction of these representations. Methodologically, this is a research with a qualitative approach, classified as documentary and interpretative, carried out in 156 editions of the magazine, published between January 1997 and December 2010. The theoretical framework mobilized for analysis came from the cultural perspective, focusing on the author’s work Julia Twigg (2007, 2008, 2010, 2013, 2017, 2018). The analyzed corpus revealed that the fashion content of Claudia magazine negotiated with age through the use of three strategies: censorship, dilution and homogenization/ erasure. There is, on the part of the publication, a normative standard imposed on older women, a morality that restrains the exposure and visibility of their bodies, which includes the use of neutral colors, straight modeling and timeless pieces. In other spaces, outside the fashion content, resistance movements were noticed, which departed from this pattern suggested by the editors.