Ancient Pre-Modern Roots

• Greek mythology; Hermaphroditus, child of Hormes and Aphrodite, merged male and female bodies.
• Hindu Tradition; Ardhanarishvara a composite form of Shira and Parrati, symbolizes masculine and femine unity.
• Indigenous cultures worldwive; Various roles for gender~diverse individuals existed long before Wester gender binaries roles took root.

19th – Early 20th Century

• Romanticism embraced ethereal, androgynous beauty in art and poetry. In Renaissance England, women were forbidden from performing on stage, so female roles were originally played by cross-dressing men or boys (William Shakespeare playwrites e.g.) Male actors feared that they would adopt transgressive femine traits, which led to the belief that crossdressing was an undesciplined act.
• Fashion reformers like Amelia Bloomer pushed for clothing that blurred gender lines.
• In the late 19th c. (1864 – 1952) one of the most famous actresses was Vesta Tilley, who worked in a music hall from age five into her fifties. Remembered as a trailblazer in performance art, influencing later drag, cabaret, and gender-bending performers.

Androgyny in the Modern World (20th C. to Now)

Here’s some cultural moments and figures who pushed androgyny into mainstream awareness:

• Gladys Bentley (1907-1960) was a blue singer and pianist, wore tuxedos and tops hats on stage, facing racial and gender norms during a very restrictive era. Openly flirted with female audience members.
• Marlene Dietrich (1901-1992) German-American who was a famous film star and singer, known for wearing tuxedos on stage and screen. Used androgynous style to project sophistication and sexual confidence. Broke into Hollywood in the 1030s and became an LGBTQ+ icon.
• David Bowie (1960s – 2010s) Created his most famous persona, Ziggy Stardust, a flamboyant, androgynous alien rock star. The Thin White Duke persona, makeup costumes, and mannerisms blurred the lines between male and female fashion and representation.
• Grace Jones (1970s – 2010s) is a Jamaican-American singer, model, actress, and style icon known for her androgynous aesthetic and artistic persona. Jones became an icon model, often wearing sharp, masculine suits with exaggerated shoulders, minimal makeup, and high-top fades. She was definitely overshadowed by the male contemporaries like David Bowie even though she should be considered on par with them.