ganguro!ganguro!Ganguro, meaning black face, is an alternative fashion in Japan that is most widespread amongst teenaged girls and young women in their 20’s. The fashion emerged in the 1990’s and peaked in popularity in 2000 though it remains current in today`s Japanese Street Fashion. Ganguro is a subgroup within the group Gyaru (Japanese pronunciation of the English word gal.) The Mecca of Ganguro fashion are the Shibuya and Ikebukuro districts of Tokyo.

Characteristics of Ganguro include a deep tan and bleached blonde hair however Ganguros are all unique and individuality is very important to the Ganguro lifestyle. Other characteristics to this visual identity include white concealer powder on lips andeyes lids, eyes lined with heavy black ink, fake eye lashes, facial sticker gems, brightly coloured outfits and platform shoes.

t raditional Japanese Beautyraditional Japanese Beauty

Traditional Japanese beauty holds fair skinand dark hair with high regard. For examplegeishas, female Japanese entertainers emphasiseby painting their faces white. Socially, Japanesesociety was also full of constraint.

Ganguro on the other hand fully conflicts with Japaneseideals through visual identity, behaviour and lifestyle. The deeptans of ganguros and bleached hair contrast with pale skin and the dark hair that is ideal for a Japanese woman. Japanese studies researchers attribute the ganguro subculture as a rebellion againsttraditional Japanese society. Ganguros also view their choice of selfrepresentation as an expression of individuality, freedom and as anti-conformist rebellion.

Because of the ideals of both ganguro culture and traditionalJapanese culture, ganguros are often portrayedin an overly negative manner in Japanese media. There is a huge amount of negative social pressures for being a ganguro lifestyle and ganguros often face discrimination by other modern subcultures as well.

magazinemagazine

Magazines which have directly influenced ganguro fashion include Egg Magazine, Popteen, Kawaii Magazine and Ego System. Egg Magazine features their own ganguro models. One of their most famous models is Buriteri, featured on the left, who was nicknamed after a famous black soy sauce. It is interesting to note that Buriteri quit the ganguro scene due to negative social pressures.

gal stylegal style

Hair accessories Facial gem stickers Platform boots in a variety of colours. Heights can go up to 11 inches.

Sarongs in bright colours. Colourful outfits that are rich in patterns.

Mini skirts and feminine clothing. Bracelets, rings and necklaces.

The key to Ganguro is excess and the best way to The key to Ganguro is excess and the best way to accomplish this is through use of lots of accessories. accomplish this is through use of lots of accessories. Even cell phones will be accessorized with gem Even cell phones will be accessorized with gem stickers and rhinestones. Though it seems there is no stickers and rhinestones. Though it seems there is no unity in the ganguro look, everything seems to be unity in the ganguro look, everything seems to be pulled in together. pulled in together.

Yamanba Kogal O-Gyaru The name means mountain witch in Japanese folklore. This is extreme ganguro.

Highschool girls who display their parents disposable income by wearing expensive designer clothing.

The key is to not wash. Tanning creams, hair dye and makeup are expensive.Òne passes on daily bathsin order to afford the look.

Himegyaru Gyaruo B-GyaruMeans Princess Gal. Unlike other Gyaru styles,Himegyarus seem to retain their youth and there is resemblance to another Japanese subgroup known as Elegant Gothic Lolita.

The male counterpart to Gyaru. Gangurosas well as other Gyarusdo not date plain men and so the Gyrauodresses in the masculineequivalent to attract Gyarus.

B-Girls emulate the hip hop look. B-Girls in Japan usuallyhave cornrows, deep tansand hip hop style clothes. Justlike in Western culture, a B-Girl is someone who breaks.

social social As said in the previous slide, gyaruos seek to attract gyarus by dressing as their male counterparts. Gyaruos are influenced by magazine such as Men`s Egg Magazine. Hair is typically styled as a mullet and range from brown to blonde in colour. Gyaruo also have tanned skin and they enjoy a party lifestyle and trance music. The fashion may be subdivided to Military, Rocker, Biker, Surfer, and Host fashions.

Like Ganguros, Gyaros also have bad reputations for being dirty and promiscuous because of their appearance and attitudes. A Gyaruo is also stereotyped as someone who practises a Japanese method for hooking up called nanpa.Nanpa is a common practice amongst youths and the method involves young men to wait at a busy street. When he sees a woman to whom he is very much attracted to, a young man will approach her and invite her out to a cafe or a karaoke bar. The evening usually ends with a love hotel (cheap, short-stay hotel that are used for sexual activities between a couple) and a promise for at least a second date. Nanpa is rare but is also socially acceptable. Too bad dating is not so easy in North America.

para-parapara-paraAnother interesting aspect of the Ganguro lifestyle is Para-Para, a synchronized group dance performed by Ganguros at clubs and raves. The dance is consists of preset movements and is predominantly motions of the arms. The dance is performed to upbeat J-Pop (Japanese pop music). The dance emerged in the 1980`s and exploded in popularity in the 1990`s. Para Para Paradise is a video series documenting different dancers doing Para Para. Para Para fanbases have been established outside of Japan in the US, Russia and Finland however the Para Para dance teams in these countries generally perform at Anime Conventions rather than clubs.

To view Para-Para in a music video: BOOM BOOM Meccha Maccho - Gyaruru To learn Para-Para: Para-Para Dance Instructions by Shanadoo

Under 14

14-16

17-19

20-22

Over 23

trendstrends

Age of Ganguros

Occupation of Ganguros

University

Highschool

Part Time WorkerSpecial School

referencesreferences1. http://what-ever-trend.blogspot.com/2008/05/yamanba-and-manba-extreme-ganguro.ht

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2. http://shourainoyume.blogspot.com/2007/08/ganguro.html

3. http://japan-powaaa.cowblog.fr/la-mode-gyaru-au-japon-2540935.html\4. http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=706942&o=all&op=1&view=all&subj=2213

294484&aid=-1&id=718134128&oid=2213294484#/group.php?gid=2213294484

5. http://www.tsujiru.net/compass/compass_1999/reg/group_2.htm

6. Wikipediahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Para_Parahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganguro

7. Scans from http://www.hellodamage.com/tdr/archive/SCANS/yamanba/newegg/1.htmlEgg MagazineMen's Egg MagazinePopteen

8. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FX2pccOuMik&feature=related

9. Gyaruru http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2aqeFjs90I0

10. http://nationalgeographic.com