Ganguro : Face to Black Fashion

And now we entering the unique fashion in Japan. i called it...

"face to black"

Ganguro (ガングロ), literally means "black-face", is a Japanese fashion trend among many Japanese girls which popular from the late 1990s to the early 2000s, an outgrowth of chapatsu hair dyeing, blonde or orange hair and tanned skin. The term ganguro is derives from the Japanese word gangankuro "ガンガン黒", meaning extremely dark, and guro "グロ", meaning grotesque, and the word ganguro translates to "blackface" or "charbroiled face", meaning heavily-sunburned face.

The basic look consists of bleached hair, a deep tan, both black and white eyeliners, false eyelashes, colourful makeup, brightly colored outfits, and platform shoes (usually sandals or boots). Also typical of the "Ganguro Gal" look are cell phones covered with purikura stickers, tie-dyed sarongs, hibiscus flower hairpins, mini-skirts, and lots of bracelets, necklaces and rings.

Ganguro was a phenomenon that was specific to Shibuya, about 1km away from Harajuku and they were totally different. No one really knows  where they came from, it's still a mystery, but there is some speculation that they were girls who were fascinated or infatuated with Janet Jackson or black American musicians or perhaps Naomi Campbell, the supermodel, but it’s still a mystery what their origins were.

Extreme trend followers further bleach their hair up to a platinum blond shade, get even deeper tans, wear white lipstick, multicoloured pastel eye shadows and tiny metallic or glittery adhesives around the bottom rim of the eye sockets. Popular Ganguro magazines include: Egg, Popteen, and Ego System.

There is a connection to Japanese folklore of ghosts and demons, who are depicted with a similar appearance and often displayed in kabuki and noh costumes. This connection to folklore is further noted in the ganguro offshoot style called yamanba (derives from Yama-uba), named after a famous story about a mountain witch.

There is some dispute surrounding the etymology of the word "ganguro." Many claim the name itself, "Black face" support this. This also goes against Ganguro itself, because many people are seeing it as racist and comparing it to the Blackface of early 1900's culture in America.