Beauty Icon Wednesday: Going Ga-Ga for Gaga

Name: Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, born March 28th, 1986 in New York City. You would know her better as Lady Gaga

Known for: outrageous stage ensembles, often bizarre taste in headwear and sometimes edible fashion choices






Ahhh, Lady Gaga. 

The name alone conjures up all sorts of theatrical imagery, doesn't it? Not to mention controversy. Lady Gaga is following closely from the playbook of the pop icons that came before, most notably Madonna, where the cardinal rule is any press is good press. You may be wondering exactly why it is that she's featured here on Beauty Icon Wednesday. Gaga is more Leigh Bowery than Vivien Leigh. She doesn't exactly fit the mold of what most people would define as beautiful. But that's precisely why she's been included. Because she represents, albeit in a rather contrived performance art sort of way, a different idea of what it means to be beautiful. Something more than the cookie cutter blonde hair and blue eyes that is so prevalent on stage and screen these days. 


It's not like what Gaga is doing is all that original - Madonna, Cher and even David Bowie and Boy George had all done it even before she was born. And although I can admit she's quite talented, especially when compared to most of the drivel that counts as pop music, to be truthful I’m not that big a fan of her music. Sure, I loved the song Paparazzi from her debut album and watched the video on an almost constant basis, but there may have been other contributing factors - chief among them being Alexander Skarsgard and those blond triplets that comprise Swedish hair band Snakes of Eden. I’m only human, after all. 


No, what I really admire about Lady Gaga is that she's not afraid to make herself 'ugly' should the situation call for it. And for any woman to have the - for lack of a better word - balls to put on a meat dress and mirrored gimp mask in the name of art earns her a place on my Icon list.


Regardless of whether I understand it or not.