The Trajectory of Taste

This was written in the Spring of 2024. It has begun to feel relevant again, so I am publishing this piece. A lot of the projects mentioned below have not been cemented into reality just yet. There may be more to come, or not. We’ll see.

The development of personal taste is a long and winding, ascending, and descending evolutionary trajectory. The trajectory is uncertain and uneven, with peaks and valleys a plenty. But there is an ultimate, eventual leveling out. The evolution does not take the form of an exponential curve – there are many dips, necessary dips – but overtime the trend should continue in a positive direction and be infinitely increasing in totality. I look at the evolution of taste as a positive feedback loop, continuously improving based on the inputs of time and experience. If done correctly, there must be failures along the path. These are periods of time where one experiments with new ideas that appeared amazing in the moment, but with 3 years of hindsight become viewed as questionable at best (those with the patience to standby while you experience these experimental phases are the real ones in your life). These periods, I would argue, are some of the most important in discerning personal style and taste. Those where one dives into something new, hard and fast, and then realizes yep, this is not for me – these are essential to the journey and help define the evolution of taste. Once a few of these phases have been experienced, the essence of one’s personal taste begins to materialize.

The topic of taste interests me quite deeply, and I think that it might be best discussed from a philosophical perspective, the philosophy here being that taste is an infinitely evolving, personally subjective concept with changes that occur at a rate that is nearly impossible to notice in the moment and can only truly be expounded upon in the post. This does not negate the fact that one can work on their taste consciously by homing in on a niche. The point is that the actual, literal taste evolution can only be realized once the shift has already begun. Even over the last couple weeks, since beginning to write this piece, I have delved deeper into a certain genre of music and without realizing how deep I went until looking back at the last 15 days and comparing it to my notes for this essay. And now I write here again, about two years since first beginning to write on this topic, and the notion still rings true, even more so.

Taste is an interesting subject for me to write about because I am well aware that, at 23 years old (I’m 25 now), I am not even halfway through my own journey, to be generous. This is not lost on me. With that said, I did grow up in the fashion industry and have been going to runway shows since I could walk. I have had the unique privilege of being at many European fashion and market weeks since a very young age. Listening, seeing, and absorbing everything possible. I attended Rye Country Day School, which at the time of my studies was a top 15 preparatory school in the nation. I played tennis at a very high junior level and had opportunities to play at a collegiate level at several schools on the East coast. I went to university in Austin, Texas, lived there for 5 years, and was a line cook in various kitchens for two and half years. In September of 2023 I made the decision to join the creative team at Tibi. Subconsciously I feel as though I was always going to find my way into the family business, I just did not know how, in what capacity, or when. I have an innate and deep understanding of Tibi, and I hope to continue to share this understanding in creative ways with those who would like to listen.

This is the introduction for a new section of my “Subject. To. Change.” Substack that will encompass all things taste across a diverse range of topics from style & fashion to food & drink, to music, and more. There will also be a “Subject. To. Change.” podcast accompanying many of these editorials that will begin airing in June. The first editorial for the “Trajectory of Taste” section will be on the evolutionary taste trajectory of Style & Fashion, from an anecdotal perspective, and will go live Wednesday, May 8, 2024.

I am happy you’re here; I am happy to be here, thank you for your time, I’ll see you soon.