In the fashion industry, latex is one of those few materials that have undergone a radical transformation. Latex clothing was once associated with fetish wear, but now it has become part of mainstream fashion as seen on high fashion ramps and worn by everyday fashion fanatics.

Example: This change from an underground culture to a popular trend shows how fluid fashion norms are and how the concept of style changes over time. The creation of latex clothes has its roots in fetishism and BDSM, where it was used for expressing eroticism through tight fit and shining surface properties. At that time, the colorful material was being sold only at specialty boutiques for people who appreciated its unique characteristics.

However, things began to change when designers realized that they could come up with new designs using rubber because it could be shaped into any form and make a body look shiny. However, avant-garde designers saw beyond this fetishistic aspect when they started taking notice of latex. In the 1970s and '80s, plastic, rubber, and vinyl were all part of the punk and new wave scene, serving as symbols of rebellion.

Pierre and Helmut Lang, two prominent fashion designers, took notice of the popular subcultural fabrics and began incorporating them into their designs. Both initially saw latex as what it was and nothing more: an item of fetish clothing. Though they had made strides in establishing it as fashionable, they had yet to break away from the public's preconceived notions of the material. Plastic was still seen as something to be hidden within the depths of seedy nightclubs, safely concealed by the cover of darkness.

Were it to catch the light, it would reveal to the world a deviant and a threat to societal values. Then came the designers who turned the world of futuristic fashion on its head. They reimagined what the public had always known latex to be, transforming it into a symbol of boldness, innovation, and a departure from tradition. With the likes of Thierry Mugler and Alexander McQueen sending the material down the runway, it suddenly became more than a garment; it became the future of fashion.

Latex no longer belonged in the hands and on the bodies of subcultural deviants; it belonged on runways again, only this time they were the ones hosting the high-end fashion shows of the world. The proliferation of latex wear across the forms of world-famous pop stars and fashion magazines also contributed to the slow death of its underground connotations. Latex was seen in ruffles, in gowns, in kink, and fashion; in leather, leggings, and even bright pink catsuits. As more and more designers added latex to their collections, their audiences could see something that most had never realized before latex could be as versatile as cotton, silk, or any other high-end material.

This new adaptability of latex marked the transition of latex from fetish to fashion, and soon enough it quickly became a favorite of the high-street fashion scene. Fashion and boundaries are growing increasingly blurrier as the years go by, and the latex industry has been much to blame for that. Once a taboo material associated with subcultures, latex now graces catwalks and magazines, demonstrating fashion's remarkable ability to transform itself and our understanding of it. From fetish to fashion, the journey of latex in the fashion world underscores the reciprocal relationship between subculture and the mainstream, as the latter constantly borrows from, and then ultimately legitimizes and commodifies, fashion elements from the former.

In choosing to work with latex, the fashion industry not only broadens its material scope, but also challenges the preconceived notions, misconceptions, and stereotypes associated with the material, ultimately pushing the boundaries of fashion. The lustrous, skin-hugging, erotic material has earned its place amongst the pantheon of fashion material, for in the world of latex, the potential for material transformation lies not in the body of the wearer, nor the dress, but in the imagination.