Why do people love fashon but hate to admit it?

The Wall Street Journal yesterday published an article by Alessandra Galloni featuring a fascinating interview with Miuccia Prada, head of the fashion company bearing her name. Ms. Prada has done a lot of thinking about women's love-hate relationship with fashion. (There may be fewer men so afflicted, but it's not an insignificant number. Just go to any bar in New York City and see.)

Ms. Prada can articulate why people are drawn to fashion better than anyone I can think of. Here are a couple of her best quotes from the article:

"Fashion enthralls everyone, from the taxi driver to the mega-intellectual.... Some say it's about seduction, but I think that's limiting," said Ms. Prada, wearing a springy flared skirt and sandals. "What you wear is how you present yourself to the world, especially today, when human contacts are so quick. Fashion is instant language."

"Buying a $5,000 handbag just because it's a status symbol is a sign of weakness," Ms. Prada said. "Daring to wear something different takes effort. And being elegant isn't easy. You have to study it, like cuisine, music and art."

The Journal has posted the entire interview transcript.

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