#TrendAlert: Don’t wear the fashion, be the fashion

06 September 2018 - 08:00
By Zola Zingithwa
Kim Kardashian models A.Human's Human Glow SS19 necklace in an Instagram video.
Image: Instagram/A.Human Kim Kardashian models A.Human's Human Glow SS19 necklace in an Instagram video.

If tattoos, piercings and grills are no longer fashion-forward, what are trend-setting fashionistas going to do to grab some attention?

Accessorise their bodies of course.

Body modification accessories are here and some astonishing examples will be on display at an event before New York Fashion Week which starts on Thursday.

Simon Huck, founder of Hollywood PR agency Command PR and friend of the Kardashian clan, has created a collection of body accessories under the title A.Human that appear to be extensions of the wearer’s flesh.

The collection will be launched at an exhibit billed as “an immersive art experience that uses set design, technology, prosthetics, live actors and more to blur the line between reality and fantasy”.

This is because the accessories are customised prosthetics made to look like implants.

Kim Kardashian, Chrissy Teigen and Queer Eye’s Tan France were roped in to help promote A.Human before the collection’s launch. Kardashian’s choker neckpiece was even synched to the beat of her heart, as seen by the flashing lights in the video that was posted on Instagram.

According to its website, the concept of A.Human is about changing the way humans express themselves and interact with fashion. It’s not about “what you put on your body, but how you change your body”.

A.Human even claims to have made a prosthetic heart that mirrors the real organ and uses a client’s DNA or that of a loved one, thus giving everyone who can afford it the opportunity to be Orlando Bloom’s character in Pirates of the Caribbean, where he literally gives his heart to Keira Knightley to show his eternal love.

Ludicrous as the concept might sound, with influencers such as Kim Kardashian supporting this trend, it is very likely going to make headway in fashion.

At this stage, at least, the implants are still faux -- but who knows what’s next?