Fashion-wise, vintage clothing has recently seen a huge surge in popularity, with vintage markets, shops and internet sites sprouting up all over the place. However many people may argue that this is due to many a Hollywood starlet parading onto the red carpet in a dress from thirty years ago, the fact simply can not be denied that it just looks pretty damn cool. Throw in the fact that so many high-end designers are currently re-hashing old trends as new that it works out cheaper for style hunters to mull around in a musty basement, and we have ourselves an explanation.
As the saying goes, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, and it is this that circles round my head when I look at earlier styles of modern technology. Take, for example, the trusty old camera. Nowadays it’s all about the digital, which reflects our current state of impatient mind perfectly. If we want a good photo, we don’t take the time to set up the angle or lighting correctly because if we know that if we don’t that’s one of our 36 images on a roll of film wasted. We snap twenty and try and muddle something together from that. But where’s the fun in that? It simply makes the whole process far less meaningful, when in reality a photo is often anything but. Yes, digital gives us more freedom in the sense that it creates more opportunities for us to screw up and have it not matter. And, yes, high numbers of megapixels and zooms can create clearer pictures, but are they less personal as a result?
I recently purchased a Diana F+ camera (above); a reproduction of the famous model from the 1960s. The cracks in the joins of it’s two plastic halves can let a bit too much light in if you’re not careful, and it has absolutely no zoom capabilities whatsoever. But the self-control shutter means that you can let as much or as little light in as possible, as well as play with the levels of exposure, and the plastic lens creates a beautifully soft effect that feels like you’ve taken a snapshot of a dream. As a result, the pictures are imperfect, but they still encapsulate everything that surrounded you at the time. Below and to the side are a couple of examples of snapshots on the Diana website; I defy anyone who does not agree they are perfect examples of imperfection.
The same applies for cars. Nowadays, there are so many ugly hunks of metal prowling our streets that it really is an abomination. Before all the petrol heads start complaining, I’m not saying that ALL cars are vile looking. Yet it is undeniable that cars fifty years ago were just so much damn cooler that standing next to one now is like receiving a whoosh of fresh air from an opening freezer door. Have a look at the pictures below and answer me this: if you had the choice, which would you rather be able to drive?
Many will now feel it is the time to argue that engines and safety measures in vehicles have improved beyond comprehension in the last however many years. I’m not saying they shouldn’t have, but just fit them into the old style frame. There is no reason why cars (and other technology in general) should look so uninspired; we live in an age where design and extravagance is being taken to the extreme, yet everything is being simplified and created to look more clinical.
The campaign for a resurgence in retro goods starts here. Record players still play music, plastic cameras still take photos, and cars that have back ends resembling the Batmobile still drive. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t use them and if it bucks the current trend of striving to obtain utter perfection then all the more for it. We’re humans, not robots, and it’s about time our everyday paraphernalia reflected our vulnerability.
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