Teach Through Art

Image from: https://www.papernstitchblog.com/24-diy-halloween-costume-ideas/

My school has an annual costume parade for grades kindergarten to sixth. Last year, everyone was HUNTR/X from KPop Demon Hunters. When I was in third grade, it was Moana. Every couple years, there is a wave of kids dressed as the newest cultural phenomenon.

But this year, I saw something different. Unlike past years, I saw almost NO REPEATS! Do you know how rare that is?! I genuinely never thought the day would come. Of course, I saw group costumes and the classic costumes people use year after year, but among the whole 260 kid parade, the costumes were incredibly diverse.

From a hot air balloon rider to Dolly Parton, I saw costumes that I had never ever thought of, nor had I expected from my school’s youngest students. I also heard more people focusing on the unique ideas of each costume.

Benefits of homemade costumes:

This observation may very well be a trend confined within my school community, but I think it reveals something greater about the direction society is heading right now. News sites such as NBC San Diego have reported that homemade costumes have made a resurgence in the past year. While not all unique costumes are homemade, many of them are or require personal add-ons later.

NBC San Diego argues that homemade costumes can save money, showcase creativity, and build off items you already have at home. They also point out that hand making a costume feels more personal. I think this is the key aspect to focus on. Some of my classmates were dressed as specific teachers or niche references. They couldn’t just buy these costumes from a store and their reference might not have hit as hard in a different community. Wearing their unique costume and hearing the validation from all these other people who are part of a very specific community at a very specific moment is incredibly empowering. It reminds you that you have people around you who truly know you and your random references.

At the same time, the act of creating the costume is more personal. Your costume is based on your personal comfort. You can dictate what parts of your costume you want to keep and what you want to change. Additionally, crafting a costume requires time and emotional attachment to the clothing item you wear on the 31st. You feel more proud to display the masterpiece you’ve put so much time into, and each compliment means so much more. Customizing your costume requires time and effort that ends up creating lifelong memories about “that time I dressed up as…”

What this trend reflects about society:

Lately, I’ve been hearing more and more about trying to differentiate. Less people seem to want to fit into the mainstream. I keep hearing the question: “How are you going to differentiate yourself in this world?”  I hear this as I apply to college and as I hear about artificial intelligence. I think more and more people are realizing that conventional paths are no longer going to provide them with a reliable road to success. There seems to be a growing consensus that to be competitive, against people or robots, means developing a unique sense of self.

Conclusions:

The shift towards homemade costumes seems to inherently reinforce creativity. Creating anything at all reinforces creativity. But I think there is something special about Halloween. A lot of people create, but Halloween encourages long-term project building. It celebrates unique ideas, and encourages the creators to embrace that work fully by wearing the piece of art itself. Halloween doesn’t just encourage creating, it allows people to experience the sharing part of creativity.