Back To The 20’s With Young Vintage Enthusiast, Rudy Irving
The death of academia, vanishing jazz clubs and speakeasies – here’s how one man in Singapore still lives like it’s the 1920s and why we all crave a vintage fantastical escape.
In the age of micro trends, styles determined by personality quizzes, and fast fashion, everyone is determined to fit into their own aesthetics or niches. But what does it mean for it to become your lifestyle? Rudy Irving has gone beyond and shown us what it’s like to live every day like it’s the 1920s.
The 19-year-old student spends the days practising the saxophone in honour of the great ages of jazz music, as well as hours studying Latin for universities in America. A writer, an academic, and a collector of all things 1920s, He dreams of a place in Harvard or Yale in honour of the scholars of the past.
For Rudy, this isn’t just an aesthetic; it’s a community. He sources his closet of vintage and new pieces from all over the world and with the help of tailors who would help bring back the idea of clothing made to fit perfectly to life – an idea that has gotten lost between buying ready-to-wear clothes. He works closely with tailors to both design his ideal closet as well as small details he’d like to see make a comeback in today’s fashion.
We’ve talked to him to find out what it’s like living every day like it’s the 1920’s and what it means in a modern city like Singapore:
Hey Rudy! Who are the people or times behind your biggest inspirations?
“I don’t have a specific person that I look up to. However, Rudy Vallee is possibly my biggest inspiration when it comes to the theming of the early American collegiate. The early to late 1920s have a chokehold on me, though sometimes I am drawn to the late 1910s, but that’s only on special occasions. I believe not in replicating a certain person’s gusto, but to emulate a community’s philosophy, till the point where you become assimilated with it. The collegiates of the early 20th century showed me the ropes, then taught me about what it meant to be a Renaissance man. So I’d better dress and act like one.”
Walk us through a normal day for you
“In the morning, I will wake up to a cup of coffee, sausages and fried eggs. And that would be enough for me to go through my Latin study, which will go for about two hours in the morning. In the afternoon, I would practice my saxophone and my singing. And in the evening, I will continue studying my AP subjects to get me into college. Well, I’m studying to enter an American college. I am looking at Yale right now, or Brown, or Cornell. But any other school will do. Chicago looks good, and so does Massachusetts. I’d like to go there because I really look upon the American higher education system as something that should be the norm...I find a lot of value in it.”
Where did you get most of your favourite clothes and pieces from, and where can people in Singapore find them?
“Unfortunately, most of my clothes are from fellas whom I know elsewhere. They are able to give me good deals on goods like my cane, my shoes, and my hat. However, in Singapore, the best I could say is to look for a good tailor who will know your body and will know what you want. Like this double-breasted navy blue blazer I’m currently wearing, made by an old tailor in Chinatown, and these pair of white corduroy pants made by my dear friend at @sakal.sg.”
What are two vintage pieces you think we should bring back?
“I believe that every gentleman should have a straw hat for the summer and spring and a felt hat for autumn and winter. The second piece I would say would be nice shoes. A nice pair of leather shoes can last you for a lifetime. Instead of the cheap plastic, rubbery, foamy shoes, they will last you for a couple of years at most. Invest in a good pair of leather shoes, and they will be your daily driver for the rest of your life.”
Tell us about some items in your vintage collection
“Over here is my 1920 Buescher True Tone Alto Saxophone. The Buescher True Tone was a league of its own. From the early 1900s to the 1920s, it was seen in the hands of people such as Benny Krueger, Rudy Vallee and Isham Jones. I treasure the way she looks. Her shiny keys, her gold wash bell, and her matte silver body. I find it really enchanting whenever I hear her croon. She sings with such vibrato, she sings with such gusto that I don’t think I’ve ever heard a human voice replicate such a sound.”
“Over here is a 1933 Brownie Kodak. I got it off a fellow in Pennsylvania and though I may not use it anymore, I still find it really neat. A great statement piece and a great decoration on my table.”
“And over here are my portraits of Rudy Vallee and all of his beauty. I look at it at night and I kiss him every night before I go to bed and I wake up to him staring down at me and I wish him good morning.”
“And over here is my favourite tweed jacket. I bought the fabric for this jacket the day my grandmother passed away, and in the lining I sewed on a patch of linen where I wrote a poem for her.”
“And finally on my suitcase, which I don’t use that much anymore, I drew a whole lot of references to some of my favourite musicians such as Will Wood and Lemon Demon.”
Tell us more about the vintage community in Singapore
“The vintage community in Singapore is unfortunately quite small. I only know about two or three fellas who might have or dress the same way as I do. However, in Malaysia and Indonesia, I think they’re way more abundant. There is a lady in Malaysia called Suzanne, and a fellow called Caleb in Malaysia. They organise events for the Southeast Asian community to get together, listen to records, dance, and reenactments, all in historical homes around Southeast Asia. And I find that really fun. Unfortunately, I have not met them in person, but I’ve talked to them quite a bit.”
Do you wish it were larger in Singapore?
“I think the vintage community is as good as it’s supposed to be. I feel that romanticising the past is not great, especially the way the world is today. However, knowledge about it should be important, just the same as mathematics and English. Though I would say sometimes I do wish it were better. Sometimes I do wish there were more people that I could dress nicely with. But I know I can’t force my values on somebody who might not believe in the same values as I do. And I think that it is a right for you to dress the way you like. Just the same way as I dress the way I like. I don’t tell other people to dress the way that I think they should be dressing. So that’s why I think the vintage community is as good as it’s supposed to be. Those who are into it will already be in it. Those who are looking to be in it usually know where to go, and those who have no interest in it are not in it, and I think that is the way it’s supposed to be.”
And what does all of this mean to you in a modern city like Singapore?
“To me, I feel like a fragment of a forgotten past. A fragment of what once was. Certainly, I may not be accurate, I may not be right, but who do I care? I think it is fun and I thoroughly enjoy myself. And as long as I am enjoying myself and I’m not putting anyone in harm’s way, I think I’m in all my right to act the way I do and to dress the way I am.”
If you could tell young people in Singapore one thing – what would it be?
“Never hate. Hate is what causes the world’s problems. Hate is what causes conflicts. And hate is what splits us as humans. And in this world that we exist in, we don’t exist in just a bubble. We don’t exist as a lone human being in a large field. We are a droplet in a wave. We are a cob of corn in a cornfield. And I think that if we love each other and we finally put our differences aside and unite as humanity, all the world’s sorrows will be over.”
This story was produced as part of F ZINE Labs – a youth-focused creative talent development platform by F ZINE that provides emerging creators with opportunities to experiment, develop industry-relevant skills and gain exposure through real-world publishing and media environments.
Through our ongoing partnership with LASALLE College of the Arts – now into its sixth year – selected final-year students from the school’s Diploma in Creative Direction for Fashion programme were invited to develop original editorial projects exploring topics they believe matter to their generation, with standout works published on F ZINE’s platforms. In keeping with the spirit of the initiative, the story has been published with minimal editorial intervention in order to preserve the creator’s original voice and perspective.
The views, opinions and perspectives expressed in this story are those of the student creator and interview subjects, and do not necessarily reflect those of F ZINE.