Not just a singer, she's a style icon: Who is Madonna as a style icon?

No one can boast of the Phoenix-like power to reinvent themselves like Madonna. Icon of years, a revolutionary… Queen of the music world who is never afraid to change, to be criticized, even to be stoned from time to time, to look different and strange. With her new album “Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones” being number 1, she is on the verge of a new comeback as always. Even if the new generations may remember her only for the single she made with Beyonce, she is someone who has dominated the music and fashion world for years and kept her originality alive with dozens of imitations. There are as many thematic fashion skins/stickers as the number of songs Madonna has produced. And the styles she creates in her music videos have a huge impact on the fashion industry.

Madonna Louise Ciccone born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known as the "Queen of Pop", Madonna has been widely recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, and visual presentation. She has pushed the boundaries of artistic expression in mainstream music, while continuing to maintain control over every aspect of her career. Her works, which incorporate social, political, sexual, and religious themes, have generated both controversy and critical acclaim. A prominent cultural figure crossing both the 20th and 21st centuries, Madonna remains one of the most "well-documented figures of the modern age", with a broad amount of scholarly reviews, and literature and art works on her, as well as an academic mini subdiscipline devoted to her named Madonna studies.

It's no joke that she even creates new styles more often than a new single. Punk culture, sports, and underground, American-style masculine suits… She tried retro and quite provocative styles. Let's talk about the change in Madonna's style in light of the albums she released and the designers who pioneered her style change.

Pre-90s: "Like a Virgin"

Madonna shook the world with her debut album "Like a Virgin", which she sang in a wedding dress in the 1980s. A high-profile wedding with Sean Penn and the taste of what she wore in those days, she was remembered as a style icon of the 80s. Leggings, banana pants, super-short skirts, high-waisted shorts, neon colors, wide shoulder pads, and hair at its brightest were all striking.

The 90s: "Erotica - Ray of Light"

The '90s were Madonna's two most popular concert tours, Blond Ambition, and The Girlie Show. This was the time when cone busts, sequined shorts, mesh tights, lace-up high boots, and beaded head accessories for the song “Vogue” appeared… Madonna's close friend, muse, and designer Jean Paul Gaultier, especially in the Blond Ambition tour, dressed the famous singer. was at the pinnacle of fame.

With the release of the song "You'll See" began a series of personal dramas, breakups, and scandals. It can also be called the period when Madonna wants to remind herself that she is valuable despite all the gossip. This period was experiencing storms not only of a new album but also of the movie "Evita". Again in this period, saying “I wanted to start a family”, her daughter Lourdes was born to dancer Carlos. This period also changed her style as she wanted to feel like a more naive woman; she gravitated remarkably toward feminine retro images. Versace and Alaia were among the designers who supported Madonna in this naive, elegant woman image. Especially if you carefully examine the cinematographic clip of the song "Bad Girl", you can see a black suit with the Alaia logo under the dry-cleaning plastic bag that Madonna tore.

The 2000s: “Music – Confession on a Dance Floor”

It's the most surprising and diverse period we've learned that Madonna is drawn to old Hollywood-style imagery, cowboy themes, gothic, sweatpants, and "unbefitting for a mother" secret wishes.

In 2005, the album “Confessions on a Dance Floor” was released. Madonna took over the screens with her new hairstyle and her pink blouse tied to her body one-piece dance dress. The new hairstyle was inspired by the retro-glamor theme and was in the style of the legendary 1920s actress Marlene Dietrich. It has become very popular. Famous for her cowboy hats, y2k style, and sporty outfits, the singer was always together with Stella McCartney both as a close friend and as a colleague with whom she carried out costume studies in those years.

2017 and later “Madame X”

Madonna moved to Portugal. She doesn't want to talk about the past anymore - he was "living the moment," as she put it. Before long, a completely new era awaited the singer. Before the release of her new album, Madonna appeared as Madame X, a secret agent who travels the world by changing her identity: “She fights for freedom and shines a light on dark places. Every day is different – either a professor or a prisoner, a student or a nun or a murderer!” Like Madonna herself, Madame X can be described as a female chameleon. The designer who helped bring her from style to style was Francesco Scognamiglio.