Beard, Alice (2003) Caught underwears: the body revealed in Nova Magazine. In: Making an Appearance: Fashion, Dress & Consumption; 10 - 12 Jul 2003, Brisbane, Australia. (Unpublished)

Abstract

'We are no longer shocked or even surprised when men and women expose the most private parts of their social, sexual and domestic lives to public exhibition. We have grown used to the naked intimacy in print or on television. Now, ... the fashion for stripping has extended from the emotional area to the physical.' ('The Logic of See-Through' in Nova, April 1968) Published in Britain from 1965 - 1975, Nova magazine earned itself an enduring reputation for its 'shocking' and 'provocative' content. From the outset Nova's intention was to respond to and address a 'new kind of woman'. What this in part appeared to represent within the pages of the magazine was a new take on the body. >From the erotic photography of Helmut Newton to a frivolous pastiche of the Vargas Playboy genre, the body in Nova was commonly revealed in various states of undress. This 'undress' was also constructed through a whole series of editorial articles and debate within the magazine which tackled emergent issues surrounding the body and sexuality. Set against the framework of sexual innuendo, pin-up pastiche and humour within the fashion pages, was the content of the 'serious' editorial articles undermined? Was this 'underwear' aimed at titillation or was it part of a wider new sensibility which reflected a growing confidence in women to openly satirise that which had previously only been uncovered and discussed in the privacy of the home?

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