By Michaela Wang ’21, Staff Writer

Other than the glittering Rolex on her most recent Instagram post, two distinct features beam when scrolling through Dear Giana’s social media page:  the hefty “24.6k” unapologetically sitting next to the word “followers”, and the intimidating “DEARGIANA x NIKE” bolded in her biography. She’s an “Instagram model” who angles her legs and neck in specific directions–just disregard her four-foot-height and miniature hands barely clutching a Mossimo purse.

Our past generation has grown up watching mature women, from Princess Diana to Cindy Crawford, dress up in high-end clothing we would never think to touch. We perceive these celebrities as plastic, curated figurines, the women who walk into a room and make everyone else feel pedestrian. We could never achieve their lofty style without a glutted bank account and white skin, as style role models of previous generations were homogeneously white. Young girls looked up to these women as role models, but find out they are just as worthless as the off-brand sneakers covering unpolished toes.  With a booming significance of social media in society, fashion has become a tool for everyone. Whether a source of confidence or a source of revenue, Dear Giana epitomizes Generation Z’s new set of fashion rules.

Giana purses her lips when she smiles, has dark bangs that cascade down her forehead, and tops off every outfit with a pair of sneakers. She is of Filipino and Mexican descent and lives with her parents and two younger siblings in Dallas, Texas. Gena, her mother and manager, runs her social media accounts.

At five years old, Giana pulled pictures from her mother’s copies of Vogue but added her own touch with pencils and markers. Giana cut out half of the model’s face and juxtaposed it to a half of the face that she drew. Gena started posting images of her daughter’s works to Instagram that gained soaring popularity among the media. Not only were people astonished that a child was able to create such a precocious piece of art, but seeing a young girl’s perspective on refined style and beauty was extraordinary. When Giana was 7 years-old, a children’s clothing brand called “même.” hosted her first art exhibit, displaying more than 40 of her works. Gena then started posting pictures of Giana styling contemporary outfits, almost as if Giana was one of her own dolls dressing up. In an interview with Wall Street Journal, Giana said, “I just did what I like…I just buy some clothes and wear it how I want to wear it.”

After discovering Giana on Instagram, Highsnobiety published an interview with her in December. Vogue asked Giana to illustrate a few looks from New York Fashion Week in February. Most recently, Nike has asked to do a collaboration with her and other young influencers.

As the meaning of dressing up has altered, marketers strive to reach out to Generation Z.  It’s less about the outfit itself, and more about the ability to pull it off. Clothing is an outlet for people to undeniably express themselves and feel good. And at times, clothing is the physical manifestation of what you emotionally cannot convey. The label on the back of a dress does not fuel confidence; conviction comes from what’s inside.  

When the Newark Academy community was asked what they think about dressing up, an anonymous student remarked, “I used to not love dressing up because it was so much work.  I was pressured to be like a celebrity walking down a red carpet, not myself. But nowadays I can just wear one cool thing and people would say, I love your outfit!  I think it’s because society has become more accepting and different is cool. Fancy pearls and gowns aren’t the thing anymore; owning what you wear and feeling yourself is a timeless trend.”

Now, luxury takes on a less strict and poised style, opting for vibrant and leisure aesthetics. Brands such as Supreme sell regular t-shirts with the logo for $500, and Nike adapted an urban style that incorporates athleisure components to streetwear.  For the first time, dressing down in sweats can be considered dressing up.

On one of Giana’s recent posts, Giana wears Nike sweatpants and a self-designed graphic shirt.  This post, the embodiment of her ability to style simple pieces, gained 2,000 likes on Instagram and numerous comments with doting emojis.  Could a nine-year-old tolerate the publicity? To keep Giana from taking all the attention too seriously, her parents limit how much stuff they tell her to keep her grounded. Gena says their daughter still has household chores, such as making her bed and cleaning her room. But the nine-year-old game-changer still plays dress up for a living.