In the 1990s, gay men became more secure and self-expressive but, arguably, shallower. During the 1980s, when men's fashion took on an androgynous or self-conscious air, the ACT UP Clone originated with AIDS activists using clothes to make a socio-political statement.
The 1970s Castro Clone provided a contrast to the disco look. With gay liberation came the 'Clone', a series of variations reflecting the concerns of gays, who co-opted apparel and grooming identified with traditionally 'masculine' men, including some viewed as oppressors. After the Second World War, the artist Tom of Finland began presenting a new image of gay men-happy, rambunctious and hypermasculine in appearance, coinciding with the development of biker culture and social groups of gay men who did not identify with the effeminate stereotype. Before Stonewall, the gay man was often identified as a 'Pansy'. Gay men have used fashion to create a recognizable image, sometimes in imitation or exaggeration of aggressively heterosexual attire. Fashion has often served as a signifier of masculinity, from baroque flamboyance to neoclassical simplicity.
