In the past few years I’ve happened to be in Scandinavia with a certain frequency, and each time I went there—be it Denmark, Norway or Sweden—i’ve always been impressed by the freshness of Scandi youth. Not only are they all quite beautiful; even the most average kid seems to be style conscious, in a simple yet very fashionable and rad way. Or, we could now say, in a very Scandinavian way.
So, when I found these pictures of a Swedish high school class from 20-something years ago, seeing how typically 80’s they are, I started wondering when this sort of young fashion boom started in Scandinavia. Did things really changed so radically in the past two decades? Or when we’ll look back in 5-10 years, will the hip Scandi teens of today be just another version of these long-haired 80’s metal kids? Either way, it’s just hard to look at them and not enjoy the view.
—Lorenzo Mapelli is the author of Sexy People. Born and raised in Rome, he now lives in Milan, where he works as online editor for VICE Italia. When Lorenzo was a teenager he smoked joints and listened to rap music, which he still does in a way.