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Future Drama

Our pill-popping solutions to fin de siecle fashion By Michael Stabile Managing Editor When I was a post-toddler I entertained the fantasy that, in the future, food would no longer be necessary. Instead, we would get everything we needed from little capsules that would replicate the calories and nutrients of a real meal. But that was the late '70s, when my mother was busy making Shaklee yeast shakes and feeding me cod liver oil. Food wasn't the most appealing concept. Valium was still popular. Two decades later, vitamin and pill intakes may have increased, thanks to echinacea, protease inhibitors and the antidepressant revolution. But, like cell phones, iMacs and homosexuals, omnipresence breeds contempt before it births acceptance. Pills have gotten a bad rap thanks the work of such disparate cultural influences as Nancy Reagan, Listening to Prozac, Phen/Fen and the cult of St. John's wort. Not to mention that the most popular pills are the ones used to treat the most embarrassing maladies. (Propecia? Viagra? Meridia? Breath Alert?) I, for one, would like to see pills placed on the pedestal they deserve, and for our spring fashion issue we've experimented with two versions of fashion's future. We've pulled clothes from a variety of local designers (NNEKA, Utopia Planetia, Dema, Grand, Fife) and mixed and matched in an attempt to evoke the inherently appealing aestheticism of pills: old two-tone colors, broad stripes and bright, cheerful hues. What more could one want in a summer wardrobe. But first, we've chosen a brand which offers such a tight and shiny fit; the wearer might as well be the contents of a capsule. Compact, protected and pretty. Y2K begone. The beauty of the future is ready to be embraced. Are you ready to swallow? Latex may not be forgiving, but it transcends mere fetish. Prescriptions for better living. [ San Francisco | MetroActive Central | Archives ]