1960s New Lifestyle Dress in South Korea

Abstract

After the May 16 coup in 1961, a social atmosphere was formed in which people to wear simplified clothes called Shinsaenghwalbok, meaning “new lifestyle clothing,” under the leadership of a strong government. The fashion designers of the time responded to this and designed various new clothes. From 1961 to 1963, various discussions on how hanbok, which is the traditional Korean clothes, should be improved by compromising with Western clothing. During this period, Choi Kyung-Ja, the former Korean Fashion Designers Association president, proposed symbolic new styles through fashion shows. One of them was named Shinsaenghwalbok of the 1960s and designated as a National Registered Cultural Property in 2022. In this study, the concept of Shinsaenghwalbok is summarized and the social background and discussions were analyzed when these clothes were designed and presented. And the results of a survey of ‘Shinsaenghwalbok of the 1960s’ artifact and its cultural value was presented. This study examined articles, books, magazines, and newspapers related to Shinsaenghwalbok and Kyung-Ja Choi. The magazines include Yeowon and Yeosang, and newspapers include Dong-A Ilbo, Kyunghyang Shinmun, Chosun Ilbo, and JoongAng Ilbo. Shinsaenghwalbok of the 1960s is tangible evidence that designers of the time developed and proposed new designs in response to the government’s movement to simplify clothing. It is also a relic that secures the historicity of the woolen fabric Goldentex, which was first successfully localized in 1956. This artifact reflects the effort to create a more reasonable compromise between hanbok and Western fashion in the early 1960s. It is a trend that has continued into the 21st century and is also in line with the direction of change of Shin-hanbok in the 21st century.