Style

In reading a 1954 book entitled 'Architecturally Speaking' by Eugene Raskin, I ran across this quote regarding style, which seemed to go hand in hand with my last post about being a 'hipster'.

Raskin says...'To sum up, the abstraction "style" may be analyzed on three levels: as a reflection of the designer's individual personality, as an identification of a period and a culture, and as a quality of execution in the work itself. Perhaps the highest stylistic achievement occurs when a highly developed and exceptional individual expresses the essence of his cultural period with the maximum of technical skill. Then you have STYLE at all three levels, and the least we can do is to show our respect by capitalizing it.'

Can we ever truly break out of the period and culture we find ourselves in? How does culture move from 'style' to another? Where is the 'tipping point' to quote Malcolm Gladwell in matters of style for individuals and cultures?