DE
Hair is not just hair. Hair (or lack of hair) can be rebellion, conformism or a symbol for belonging. If you were a christian hermit you let your hair and beard grow to show social exclusion and imbrutement, the teutons advertised their social status with their hair – only free men wore long hair, to get your hair cut was a severe punishment.
For a long time a flowing head of hair was accredited with magic power and vigour so kings and peers saw it as their exclusive right to wear it long.
And last but not least we all remember Gandalf in ‘Lord of the Rings’ who showed us what a real wizard ought to look like – long fuzzy hair and beard, preferably white. That’s wisdom at its finest.
So why on earth does someone who carries years and years of magic power and wisdom on his shoulders and around his chin all of a sudden let go of it? Hairloss could be a reason….but not in this case. Maybe practical reasons – hair care takes too long, hair gets caught in shoulder straps/ zippers/ mouth/ food? I don’t think so, you don’t throw away decades of hair just because it gets tangled every once in a while.
I can just assume what it was that made Joerg cut off his Gandalfian, almost waistlength hair. I think of a snake. Shedding skin. Starting something new. Surprising yourself and the people who think they know you so well. Getting rid of the past – and ready for something new. Maybe that’s reading too much into a simple new haircut. But if you were ever daring enough to get a seriously different haircut you know that it is more than just leaving a few strands of hair behind on the floor – it’s the possibiliy of creating a new self. And that feels pretty magic.
For a long time a flowing head of hair was accredited with magic power and vigour so kings and peers saw it as their exclusive right to wear it long.
And last but not least we all remember Gandalf in ‘Lord of the Rings’ who showed us what a real wizard ought to look like – long fuzzy hair and beard, preferably white. That’s wisdom at its finest.
So why on earth does someone who carries years and years of magic power and wisdom on his shoulders and around his chin all of a sudden let go of it? Hairloss could be a reason….but not in this case. Maybe practical reasons – hair care takes too long, hair gets caught in shoulder straps/ zippers/ mouth/ food? I don’t think so, you don’t throw away decades of hair just because it gets tangled every once in a while.
I can just assume what it was that made Joerg cut off his Gandalfian, almost waistlength hair. I think of a snake. Shedding skin. Starting something new. Surprising yourself and the people who think they know you so well. Getting rid of the past – and ready for something new. Maybe that’s reading too much into a simple new haircut. But if you were ever daring enough to get a seriously different haircut you know that it is more than just leaving a few strands of hair behind on the floor – it’s the possibiliy of creating a new self. And that feels pretty magic.
Joerg wears a shirt by Hannes Roether, shorts by Replay RBJ and sandals by Kenzo.
©Julia Richter
