Dark Academia Meetup

Dark Academia in Downtown New Haven

Group members socializing inside the main floor of The Institute Library

Before I left for Italy, I planned a fashion meeting around visiting The Institute Library in New Haven, CT to experience the library itself as well as the Forecast divination themed art show in The Gallery Upstairs that I was an artist in. The Institute Library is Connecticut's oldest independent circulating library, and one of the last remaining membership libraries in North America. It was founded in 1826, and its mission is to fulfill its historical purpose of "mutual assistance in the attainment of useful knowledge" for its Members and the New Haven community at large through literature, civil discourse, and the arts. It's free to visit it during open hours and they have a big bowl of candy. The library offers several free talks as well as low cost concerts in the evenings sometimes. If you become a member, you can take out the books as well as participate in their weekly programs like Low Key Bridge and Friday Night Jazz in the vinyl listening library. 

Having already visited the library twice before this meeting, I knew that my main fashion prompt for the group was  going to be to dress in dark academia style. Dark Academia is a literary internet aesthetic and subculture concerned with higher education, the arts, literature, or an idealized version thereof. The aesthetic is focused on boarding school uniforms, interior design, activities such as writing, poetry, ancient art, classic literature, well as classical Greek and Collegiate Gothic architecture. The fashion of the 1930's and 1940's such as cardigans, blazers, dress shirts, plaid skirts, oxford shoes and clothing made of houndstooth and tweed with a color palette consisting mainly of black, white, beige, browns, dark green and navy blue. The subculture draws on idealized aesthetics of higher education and academia, with books and libraries featuring prominently. The subculture tends to romanticize the finding of beauty and poetry in dark themes. Classic works of literature that inspire the aesthetic include The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde and poetry from Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley. 

The secondary fashion prompt was to wear an outfit that included border prints or accessories that fit with the Divination exhibition theme. The color palette still leaned in the darker/autumnal direction like dark academia, but members were encouraged to explore outfits with prints and accessories that depict divination tools like tarot cards, palmistry, astrology, or gothic undertones like skull faced cameos and ornate rings. 

Dark Academia Fits

My coordinate with and without exterior wool cloak

Now believe it or not, this was one of the first times that I made a meeting and I had absolutely not a clue as to what I was going to wear. I knew that my wardrobe had the colors required to pull off dark academia, but how was I going to put it together? I always try to challenge myself to make something unique and not repeat a coordinate and I'm proud of myself for this one. 

The base layer is a JSK from Chinese indie brand YingLuoFu. The dress has a print of a study for a classical oil painting probably made around the Baroque era of an earlier time period's victory military parade. If you look closer at the plaque in the middle, it says Fortuna in Latin. The Wheel of Fortune is one of the Major Arcana in the tarot divination system, and classical art is part of the dark academia aesthetic. So I effectively met both fashion prompts, but the majority of my coordinate is still dark academia as I am still reading as a student rather than a romanticized divination reader.  Other ways I tied in the student aesthetic include the ivory bishop sleeved blouse with the neck tie and brooch under a fitted brown double breasted vest. I am wearing dark brown suede oxfords and a matching wool beret. For accessories I am wearing a long bronze necklace with a clock dial and a dark brown satchel style purse with the cogs and dials of clock that can be turned. My outerwear is hooded mid length dark green double breasted wool cloak, which is similar looking to what nurses wore in the 1940's.  It kept me warm on a very windy day!

Barbara in Dark Academia; Photo Credit to Athina Bellios

Where I looked like a student of a boarding school, Barbara looked like one of the professors. She is wearing a long black skirt with a cream colored button down blouse with an amazing tweed blazer over it all. She has subtle pins attached to her blazer, and a pearl necklace with a large hanging pendant balancing nicely with the other colors and textures. The round metal glasses and the light brown felted hat speak of someone who has traveled the world (whether literally or through acquired knowledge) and you won't even know class is over because you will be so engaged in the story of her experience. 

Johanna wearing dark academia Ouji; Photo credit to Athina Bellios

I love to see a good Ouji (prince style) coordinate and Johanna really pulls it off quite well. They are wearing a long sleeved white ruffle stand collar blouse with black ruffle bloomers. Over both the blouse and the bloomers is a long black vest that cinches at the waist. A stellar red lace jabot with a large skeleton cameo and ties hangs at the neck. There are also other cameo pins on the lapels of their vest. They have black lace wrist cuffs and a black wool hat with accessories that match the red accents in their coordinate.  Professor or student, I'm not sure. They could easily be both!

Cole in Dark Academia; Photo credit to Athina Bellios

Cole looks like she stepped out of the set of the Netflix show Wednesday. Her coordinate is more modern looking, but follows the Dark Academia aesthetic of the plaid skirt with a dark colored top and a long black brocade military style coat. Accessories include high black boots with ruffled knee socks, a black choker, and a Book of Spells crossbody purse.  

Magical Artefact in 3 Ways

Jenna; Photo credit to Athina Bellios

Jenna's coordinate definitely towed the line between student of magic and divination and librarian with a mysterious past. The dress she is wearing is Magical Artefact Ribbon JSK by Japanese brand Metamorphose. This was a very popular dress at this meeting---3 people were wearing it and one had the matching purple color way! The printed design on this dress includes books, cats, candles, stars, and writing with a witches/magic theme. Jenna repeated the stars in her hair accessories as well as in her over the knee socks. She also incorporates a gothic leaning theme with a bird skull framed necklace and a skeleton hand with black rose corsage attached to her black wool beret. 

Jax wearing the same cut and colorway of Magical Artefact; Photo Credit to Athina Bellios

Jax similarly pairs the Magical Artefact JSK with a black long sleeved blouse and black shoes. They are also wearing glasses with a decorative eyeglass chain. They are carrying a satchel with a luna moth theme on it. 

Colleen wearing the green color way of Magical Artefact; Photo credit to Athina Bellios

Colleen has purple hair like Jenna, but is wearing the green version of Magical Artefact. She has large round metal framed glasses, a black and a gold grimoire style book cross body bag. She has kept the rest of her accessories black with subtle silver accents so the focus is truly on the print of the dress.

Other Candids and Photos

Al looking very serious in her purple and black Alice Skull JSK from Bodyline which print features tarot cards, pentacles and skulls in a contrasting diamond pattern. Photo credit to Athina Bellios

Aly's glamour shot between the stacks; Photo credit to Athina Bellios

Sarah's vintage styled dark academia with a modern styled boot and satchel twist; Photo credit to Athina Bellios

Maureen's coordinate. She said she was more of a dandy than a student or professor, but it was still a well put together look! Photo credit to Athina Bellios

I'm getting better at positioning my hands for interesting photos. Photo credit to Athina Bellios

I read banned books---and you should too!

I was surprised at the number of people who showed up for the meeting. After we took a series of candids and individual photos with Athina, we perused the gallery space and then the volunteer that day gave us a tour of the library which included how it is organized, how to use the card catalog, the kinds of collections in each part of the library, and the really special bathroom with the hand carved wooden toilet seat. Some of us took on a side quest to Strange Ways afterwards for unique patches, pins, and gifts and then ended our day at Claire's Corner-Copia, a well known casual vegetarian restaurant with a flair for meeting a variety of dietary needs.  It was such a wonderful day and I definitely introduced several people to the library who had apparently walked by it for years and/or never knew it existed!