Lady Gaga Slams Cathy Horyn In New V Magazine Column

by Justin Fenner | 1:49 pm, September 1st, 2011

We understand that Lady Gaga is obsessed with fashion, but her new column for V Magazine, in which she basically tries to get back at New York Times fashion critic Cathy Horyn for unfollowing her on Twitter, largely misses the point of fashion criticism is all about.

The Mother Monster sets out on a misguided and vague attempt to suggest that when critics, who aren’t necessarily even experts in what they’re criticizing, become predictable, their criticism isn’t useful anymore. And then she posits that Horyn’s criticism, which has been filling newspapers, magazines and websites across the country and the world for literally longer than Gaga has been alive, is predictably negative — always negative, in fact. And how much good can someone snarkily making fun of all the clothes ever produced ever be good for the industry?

Gaga asks a lot of questions, chief among them, “When does the critique or review become insult and not insight?” She hails the writing of Tavi Gevinson, the 15-year-old blogger who is launching her own magazine soon, as “the future of journalism.” Hory, however, is too frequently dismissive to actually do the job. “It’s much more challenging to reckon with and analyze a work,” Gaga says. “It requires research, but maybe no one does their research anymore.” And then, Gaga asks what Horyn can do to separate herself from the online pack of people who post comments about fashion on Facebook and Twitter.

And that’s the thing. Cathy Horyn is already separate from the pack. She’s the reason the pack exists — people who don’t know the first thing about fashion want to be just like her. And while Horyn’s reviews have their fair share of snark, they’re written from a a critical perspective that no other working journalist has today. The hard line she draws between good fashion and bad is the reason she’s so admired — and so vilified. Every season, Cathy Horyn scares the pants off designers and forces them to do work. And it doesn’t take a fashion genius to figure that out.

So what is Gaga after, exactly?

Where my argument leads is to the perspective space of art, which is subjective and not ultimately rooted in mathematics or physics. Is it not even more critical for fashion and art critics to be profusely informed not only in art history but in the subliminal? The public operates with the assumption that critics are experts in their respective fields. But are they? Does every critic have the soul to really receive a work in the transcendental sense? The out-of-body experience of art?

Oh, OK. We get it. Gaga is just sensitive because she’s caught up in the idea that everything she puts on her back is art. Well, let us just say this: Cathy Horyn is a critic of fashion, and does a bang up job of it. And while her criticism extends to the artistry that goes into producing clothing, it is not overly concerned with other people’s definitions of the space fashion falls into. That is to say, just because you think Giorgio Armani’s couture collection is worthy of being displayed in the Uffizi Gallery, doesn’t mean she does. And we don’t expect her to apologize for that.

[V Magazine]

cathy horyn Fashion Criticism Lady Gaga Tavi Gevinson The New York Times V Magazine

Taifune

Oh for heavens sake, whoever made this shut the fuck up.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_LASIK3PT7Z4QXQGTN4G4GZ3QYY Nayith

Absolutely Agree with you Justin. Even when GaGa has been such a mass-monster She is still not iconic to consider herself them most relevant person in fashion. And I don’t know why she is doing exactly “the same” against Ms. Horyn.
Cathy’s contributions to fashion journalism are absolutely unique. She has been pushing designers to do a better job. i.e: Dior Couture. And she actually is different from the “online-pack” because no matter what, she knows how to handle that and put awesome reviews. Most likely her “evil” ones are remembered for longer time, but if we really analyze it, she does good reviews too.
May be Lady GaGa is afraid of Ms. Horyn, and telling her that she is actually a World-Phenomenon that justifies her “column”, but it doesn’t make her the greatest person in fashion. We’ll see in future years is she actually was that “Iconic” as she considers herself, if within 30 years I’ll be reading retrospectives about Lady GaGa as I do now on Bazaar about Jackie O’ or Duchess of Windsor.
Karl says that the judge of our fashion today is not us, is the future. So let’s wait, and see who actually did an appropriate job… From my side Gaga has become the “Forever 21″ of the XXI Century in fashion. A copy of lots of things that no matter how much we try to probe its “fakeness”, people still buys it.
Debbie

Sounds like Cathy is one of those people that continually whines, and gets away with it just because some posh eedjits love contrast, and we follow like sheep.
I think what Gaga is trying to say is what gives someone the right to do that, just because they are renowned for it? Even though the whole culture following Gaga can be in many cases within the lines of worship, she actually makes a fantastic point here, but it is missed just because the people that are too blinded to see fashion as art are made into ‘critiques.’

Oh, this is also in one of your other articles: ‘Paris Fashion Week tents is “an extremely long walk of shame.”’ Another of dear ol’ Cathy’s criticisms. She sounds like a bundle of fun…
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_OKXCKCYJZQQH3FMXIAXC6GEKYA Fania

Cathy Horyn is a butt ugly hater. WHY THE HELL DOES SHE HAVE A JOB IN FASHION WRITING? Why? Because ugly women with media power being spiteful make women paranoid and then they’ll spend money and consume more.

“Cathy Horyn is a critic of fashion, and does a bang up job of it. And while her criticism
extends to the artistry that goes into producing clothing, it is not
overly concerned with other people’s definitions of the space fashion
falls into” Complete and utter nonsense! She looks like an Orc reject from Toliken casting.
http://www.facebook.com/MrHipHOp3 Keslon Henry

in my opinions some people & also critics dont see Arts this is the 21st Century look at Alexanda McQueen as he worked with Lady Gaga thats what you called fashion his work and her work are both dominant using Arts can breakout alot of Fashion Industries to use their creativity. Fashion is about creativity & how to use your imaginations within your minds can process of visualizing of what you see in your vision. Gaga has used artitechure in music. i am also an artist i know this ive been doing arts at the age 7 what Gaga is doing is something that is alot inspiring it can open doors for all fashion designers. Last time i saw Lady Gaga wearing a styrotext outfit i was amazed & amused by her fashion i see her arts. Theres a word called Visionairy it means once you have the full vision of what you see what has came over your mind and you visualized it thats when you built your own sculpture or any material that can pull off the right image that you have created. Famous UK fashion designer who died last year Alexanda McQueen has been named as Visionairy look at his 2011 Collections, Lady Gaga is heading her way just like McQueen because she pioneer her looks giving off her futuristic looks it can be described as an Eco Friendly style. so these professional fashion Critics like Cathy dont even see fashion into arts like they are blind because this is the 21st Century not the 20th Century fashion will always be a big climate change. Meaning todays fashion has been erased off Lady Gaga has took over fashion by storm shes far away its like shes from cloud 10 as she kept breaking barriers into fashion Gaga’s growth is alot far. crafting your talents can get you anywhere higher like Gaga her creativity has grown into an international inspirational true artiste shes becoming an Idol its a saying ” How Did The World Went Crazy For Gaga” lolz
Magga

I read the whole of Gaga’s column, and to me, all it came across as was senseless, childish rubbish, dressed up with lots of fancy, long words, and lame attempts to make deep, philosophical statements about art and fashions, which in reality were just the kind of vague, facetious descriptors that people use when what they’re saying really has no meaning or relevance to anything.
The sheer arrogance of Gaga, that she would even begin to speculate on the expertise of a woman who has been criticising fashion, and criticising it well, before Gaga had even staggered her way on to the scene. Once you stripped away the equally irritating assertions from Gaga that everything she does is somehow incredibly creative and important and ‘art’ just because she’s mastered the dubious ‘faux naive’ trend that is plaguing the actual art world and she shoves a few telephones or a fishbowl on her head, the main ethos that you get is ‘this woman’s (Horyn) opinion is irrelevant because she doesn’t like me, whereas the fourteen year olds on facebook and twitter who praise the ground I walk on and think I am super awesome and an ‘icon’ are clearly much better critics and should be the model to which all others should conform.’
Maybe Gaga needs to do her research, and realise that the very word ‘critic’ comes from the word ‘criticism’. It is Horyn’s job to critique fashion, despite Gaga’s whines that she is ‘too negative’, if Horyn were to praise every outfit or piece of clothing that this joke of a woman, or anyone else, throws on their back, what would be the point?
It just shows how transparent all Gaga’s messages of loving yourself no matter what really are if she responds to criticism against her with this kind of immature retaliation. In the past I thought she only dressed and acted like a fool, but this is convincing me that she really is one, right down to the core.
LithiumB

I think the coherency of this post just about summed up the intellectual capacity of the average Lady Gaga fan.
http://www.facebook.com/abe.gurko Abe Gurko

Of all the weeks that Lady Gaga comes out fighting with words against Cathy Horyn, this would not be the one http://bit.ly/rbfGCI
http://www.facebook.com/people/Sarah-Blennerhassett/100002451053166 Sarah Blennerhassett

cathy knows what she’s talking about its just the fact tha gaga hates to be criticised.
Anonymous

But Gaga wants to put less emphasis on professional fashion critics and
more on, well, everyone else who’s got a pulse and an Internet
connection. http://bit.ly/qVqJeI

Lady Gaga Slams Cathy Horyn In New V Magazine Column

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