Words Niku Kasmai
GENDER ILLUSION When excessive femininity pervades men’s fashion
Reflecting the world’s changing perception of gender identity, big fashion houses are creating clothes that increasingly flout the boundaries between the masculine and the feminine. Brands like Gucci, Balenciaga, Maison Margiela and others have taken traditional male looks and turned them upside down, resulting in collections that are eccentric, unexpected and imbued with feminine touches. If fashion is a harbinger of things to come, then we’re in a for a brave new world where gender has disappeared and the future is one of fluidity.
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GUYS AND GIRLS AT GIVENCHY When she designed the men’s fall/winter 2019-20 for Givenchy, artistic director Clare Waight Keller said that she looked back to her youth in the 1990s, and how she managed to dress distinctively on a tight budget. Gleaning further inspiration from her womenswear palette, she created a collection that is both soft and fluid, with belted trench coats and jackets, flared pants and oversized collars. She even has men carry bags and wear necklaces, pushing her collection into complete androgynous territory.
Givenchy
MCQUEEN’S RUGGED REFINEMENT Much like Waight Keller did, Alexander McQueen’s creative director Sarah Burton looked to her past – and specifically to her native Macclesfield in England’s north – to create the brand’s latest fall/winter collection. The result is a menswear line that is rugged and delicate all at once – manly in its choice of materials, but certainly also feminine in its selection of patterns and accessories. There are brilliantly colored silk jacquard suits with metallic rose emblems plus crystal-singed jackets, many dizzyingly augmented by crystal necklaces and earrings or even lace patterns. It’s certainly one of the most gender-fluid men’s collections to date from the house of McQueen.
