Yaya Han's World of Cosplay by Yaya Han

Author:Yaya Han [Han, Yaya]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sterling

Alyson Tabbitha cosplaying as Jack Sparrow.

For some people, dressing up as characters from different genders is a way to explore their own gender identity. Whereas in real life it might be difficult to find occasions to change your perceived gender appearance without judgment, conventions and cosplay offer a relatively safe space for people to become whoever they want, even if it’s just for a day. That doesn’t mean the cosplay community is devoid of social stigmas such as homophobia, but in a fandom setting where others are portraying superheroes, aliens, and mythical beings, it can be more comfortable for someone to experiment with cosplaying characters of different genders. As our understanding of gender identity continues to evolve, it is important that we foster an open and welcoming environment for all, including LGBTQ+, nonbinary, and transgender cosplayers.

Cosplay may have started out with the replication of costume designs, but it has evolved far beyond that into a vast field full of artistic freedom and creativity. Besides redesigns of existing characters, many cosplayers enjoy making original costume designs of creatures such as fawns, fairies, and mermaids. My Retro Space Girl is an original character I created more than a decade ago and who I still make new costumes for. There was a time when a lot of people were hesitant to consider original costumes as cosplay, but thankfully they are now widely accepted as part of the art form.

Still, you might be asking yourself where cosplay ends and when it becomes something else—especially since there is so much crossover and influence between cosplay and fashion, theater, live-action role playing, and historical costuming. I think that any inspiration can be turned into a costume and that what you want to call it is up to you. Cosplay would not exist if people didn’t have all these different fun and weird ideas and were compelled to make them into real, wearable outfits. It also would not be nearly as exciting if everyone looked and dressed the same. As such, I hope that in the future we won’t feel bound by terminology or limited by categories. Cosplay is an art form that is meant to be explored, and the diversity and variety is what propels our community to continue growing. The most important thing is that people have fun doing it.

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