As part of our ongoing series exploring the purpose of the superhero costume in do-gooding efforts, we bring you this issue on functionality. Aside from needing to look good, a superhero costume must be functional and this article will give you some of the basics to take into consideration when choosing your outfit.
Functionality
The cape has been a staple of the superhero costume, but functionality-wise it serves no purpose.
If symbolism explains the abstract purpose of the costume, functionality explains its practical purpose. Functionality refers to how your costume directly aids you in your missions. For crime-fighting superheroes, your costume may play a vital role in ensuring the success of your efforts: bullet-proof vests protect you from harm; masks conceal your identity; pockets and pouches can hold your gadgets.
Functionality should be taken into account for all superheroes, not just crime-fighters. This can range from making sure the material that you use in your costume is strong and flexible, to simply avoiding heavy fabrics if you live in a hot area.
Additionally, if you are involved in activities such as street outreach, making sure that you have pouches or a bag to hold supplies in is one of the simplest expressions of functionality.
The bottom line: practicality must always be taken into consideration when designing your costume.
Keep in mind that certain aspects of the classic superhero costume don’t quite translate all that well into the real world. Capes, for instance, more than any other accessory embodies the image of a superhero, but Real Life Superheroes have consistently run into problems when trying to incorporate the cape as part of their costume. Capes can be unwieldy, annoying, and even dangerous as they run the risk of getting stuck in escalators, caught in doors, or stepped on – by you or someone else.
So, for functionality purposes, the cape is almost entirely useless. But for symbolic purposes, the cape remains a very desirable accessory – precisely because it immediately evokes the classic image of the superhero. That’s why capes still remain popular additions to costumes of Real Life Superheroes involved in volunteerism, homeless outreach, and, especially, public speaking. In fact, the symbolism of the cape in making the superhero can be so strong that the cape alone can identify someone as a superhero, which is why we highly recommend making it a part of your costume if you are involved in any non-crimefighting activities and need that extra bit of superhero seasoning.
Sifting through his photos of the earthquake-devastated Haiti, I was overcome by a number of emotions – from horror to shock and pity – but one impression that remained a constant was that this was the work of a genuine professional. In any context, Sebastiano Tomada Piccolomini’s photos could be mistaken for the best work to have come out of National Geographic or any other magazine. It is the work of a true artist, and he hasn’t even graduated from the New School yet – that will happen this Spring. I recently sat down with Sebastiano to discuss his recent trip to Haiti, where he extensively photographed the devastation and the drama for an Italian magazine.
What brought you to Haiti?
Besides the fact that I got an assignment from a magazine, I wanted to go because I was trying to build a portfolio since my real interest is to become a war photographer. I also felt that it was important for people to know more about the aftermath of Haiti because 90% of the US based news was only about the immediate aftermath of devastation and the death. A lot of press was only there for about 3 days to shoot dead people and destroyed buildings before leaving the country – which is not helpful at all if trying to send a message.
What was your experience like?
I got to Santo Domingo and touched base with a UN base. Later we got transportation to the border and then we were picked up by a guide that drove us around before touching base with the US army – whom we were embedded with. We had vehicle support and aerial support to really fully understand the situation. Seeing the situation from a helicopter totally changes your perspective and gives you a complete view of the extent of the destruction.
What was your immediate impression of Haiti?
It was kind of screwed up because the first thing we saw was this purgatory zone which is on the border between Santa Domingo and Haiti which has become a kind of a no-mans land and it just showed you what was really happening – a lot of Haitians trying to flee the country and a lot of seriously desperate children who would surround you just because you were a white person wearing gear.
Desperate how? Hungry?
Hungry yes – they weren’t getting enough food because many of their families died and their only option was crossing the border or taking advantage of the foreigners crossing the border.
How are the Haitians responding to the crisis?
Not well at all. We have to understand that the country was poor before the earthquake and they’re now even poorer, so there’s a very survivalist mentality plaguing the people right now. It also doesn’t help that they’re extremely superstitious. Because of this, they’re afraid to return to their homes thinking the homes are cursed and one of the main ways the US military is trying to help is by testing the structural integrity of the homes to convince them that they’re safe. That said, they’re a very resilient people they’re working very hard to move forward.
What has the nonprofit response been like? Have they been successful?
The thing is that you cant say they havent been successful simply because they’re bringing a lot of basic needed materials such as food and shelter, but at the same time NGOs should understand that after a while they should somehow leave the country and train the population to become independent because as it is people have become extremely dependent. And a lot of NGOs are also taking advantage of this dependence. One example is the Chinese nonprofits that have somehow managed to take control of the textile area for obvious business reasons.
Take control of the area how?
They’ve rebuilt the textile factories and are taking control of that property in an attempt to somehow estbalish a foreign route of control. Its kind of like what happened after WWII – the Americans came to a destroyed Europe and then rebuilt Europe in many ways to their favor – and now its full of American bases.
What do you think will be the future of Haiti?
I heard from a missionary that has been living in Haiti for the past 25 years that the population is now a month and a half old because they have been reborn. I hope that they rebuild stronger than before, and I think they’re a great people, but there are a lot of foreign influences at work inside Haiti right now and I think the best course would be to make them more independent. If this is done, they could start a whole new chapter of history for Haiti.
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this is a fantastic article. i believe todays real life superheroes care to much about appearances [capes].
>looking for rlh’s in n las vegas nevada.
I do have a few tips for others right now:
If you are going to wear bulletproof armor, conceal it as part of your costume, as if you are shot at, a gunman who sees the armor will aim for areas that aren’t protected.
Keep your costume versatile, so you will be able to function in all areas. For example, I am in the process of creating a jacket, so I will be able to work in colder environments, but I have both short sleeve and long sleeve shirts with my insignia. People might forget you if you change your insignia, but they will still recognize you if you put on a jacket in your colors.
Reliability.
Equality.
Determination.
Redline.