BUZZCUT
Born from military practicality and uniformity, the buzzcut entered civilian life in the 70s as part of skinhead style. In stark contrast to the fashionable coiffed men’s looks of the era, the military associations of the hypermasculine shaved head meant it encapsulated the aggressive overtones of the skinhead movement perfectly. Later, the buzzcut was picked up by women who often wanted to make a statement against traditional ideas of femininity and accepted beauty standards – although it didn’t take long for the mainstream media to reimagine women who chose to wear shaved heads as variously lesbians, feminists or emotionally unhinged. These days, the buzzcut is often used as a creative outlet for colour, patterns and even messages of protest – the ideal personalised blank canvas.