Register here. The scenario raises a rarely discussed issue: why is women's fashion so dominated by gay men? And is the wonderful world of fashion really tainted by heterophobia? It's true that naming straight designers can easily revert to a dull parlour game second only to listing famous Belgians in its count-them-on-one-hand limitations even then, one's insider friends will take pleasure in telling you that there are question marks over the shortlist anyway and fashion's more controversial spokesmen do little to dispel the myth.
American designer Michael Vollbracht, from Bill Blass, claims gay men may actually be genetically superior at fashion. I am an elitist. I am better than straight people. Women are confused about who they want to be. I believe that male designers have the fantasy level that women do not.
So perhaps it is not surprising that in Tara Subkoff, one of the co-founders of the US label Imitation of Christ, damned fashion as 'a gay man's profession' and even went so far as to accuse American Vogue editor Anna Wintour of supporting only 'young, gay men'. But things are changing, and especially here in anti-heterophobic, pan-sexual London where the ever liberal fashion scene doesn't feel the need to be quite so excluding and a gang of straight male fashionistas, including designers Giles Deacon and Christopher Raeburn and superstylist Karl Templar, are making their mark.
There are actually loads of us. You just don't know about us,' laughs Kinder Aggugini, the Italian-born London-based designer whose fluid, beautifully tailored polka-dot-trimmed dresses and militaristic outerwear are currently wowing not just London but also New York where he recently launched a collection for Macy's department store.
While his girlfriend Natalie Hand supermodel Natalia Vodianova's agent has her make-up done, Kinder talks through his career in fashion, which started back in a Milan schoolyard when he couldn't get picked for the football team. As he became fashion obsessed, did his academic parents make assumptions about his sexuality?
Throwing himself into London's counter-culture scene, he minded Rachel Auburn's stall at Kensington High Street's Hyper Hyper now TK Maxx , hung out at straight-friendly gay nightclubs like Heaven and Taboo, and even flat-shared with the performance artist Leigh Bowery. This meant dressing up in outrageous homemade outfits and wearing lots of eyeliner.
It wasn't a conventional lifestyle but this was the mids. I'm sorry, I think you have your Guardian columns mixed u p. Oh, no wait a minute — sorry, I read your email too quickly. You didn't ask whether your father is gay because you caught him masturbating over a gay porn magazine, as one Sexual Healing inquiry had it , but why all male fashion designers are gay. Oh, for God's sake. I'm always amazed at the popularity of this ridiculous canard. Honestly, am I the only one who eagerly snaffles down articles with headlines such as "Ralph and Ricky Lauren show us around their glamorous ranch!
With perhaps the exception of "A day in the life of a supermodel", there is no genre of fashion article I love more than one in which a fashion designer shows off his lovely home, one he often shares with someone else, and, as often as not, that other person is someone of the opposite gender. Just off the top of my head, aside from Lauren and Hilfiger, Paul Smith, Rick Owens, Oscar de la Renta, Christian Lacroix and Yohji Yamamoto are all male fashion designers who do more for the ladies than design clothes for them sorry — that looks a lot creepier written down than it sounded in my head.
All male fashion designers, all straight. But of course, fashion detractors with homophobic tendencies don't like these obvious examples because they don't corroborate their pet theory that fashion is a medium through which evil gay men humiliate women because they are jealous of their femaleness.
I have heard this ridiculous theory proposed by an amazing number of people over the years, by many seemingly otherwise intelligent beings with heretofore very hidden bigoted tendencies, and it's one that never fails to fascinate me.
Let's not even bother with the patently hilarious ideas that gay men want to be women without wishing to resort to sweeping generalisations myself, the gay men in my acquaintance generally look like they're having a lot more fun than the women , or that women are so stupid they not only don't know when they're being "humiliated" but that they pay money to be so. And then let's resist making the deeply obvious points that there are plenty of female fashion designers who make clothes that are just as uncomfortable as anything churned out by a gay male fashion designer; or that the people who are truly in charge of the fashion world, ie major magazine editors and the head of fashion conglomerates such as PPR and LVMH, are all either women or straight men.
For all I know, that may be true — but when there is a massive gulf between interests, things can be just as tricky. At the time, I had just started a brand-new job covering fashion news and regularly attended fashion weeks and press events. I remember the first time she saw the rows of sneakers lining the floor of my apartment and the extensive collection of expensive coats that was stuffed inside my closet.
She told me that she'd never dated a guy who cared so much about how he dressed. It wasn't a bad thing, but it was definitely new territory for her. That's not to say she doesn't care about her wardrobe.
In fact, the sheer amount of clothing that she owns easily tops mine. Although, she isn't about to look through every new collection shown in New York or Paris each season or keep up with the most recent designer collaborations. She enjoys fashion to the degree that she has developed a defined look and buys a fair amount of new clothing that fits her style, but she avoids becoming too invested in the industry and has set a personal monetary limit on how much she'll spend on a specific piece.
I, on the other hand, have worked to kick a mild shopping addiction and, since changing jobs in early , have turned fashion from an obsession to a hobby. Over the last year and a half, I've dropped my purchase rate to a socially acceptable level, but my higher salary means I'm less afraid to spend more money on fewer items. I've moved closer to attaining supposed shopping enlightenment that fashion editors preach: " Buy less, buy better. However, no two relationships are the same.
Based on some recent conversations with guys like me who consider themselves the person in the relationship who is more into fashion than their significant other, those dynamics vary wildly, from spending habits to excitement about clothing in general. Scott Mirtsopoulos, a merchandiser at Calvin Klein , explains that he — while newly single — tries to get the "green light" on new purchases when in a steady relationship. But at the same time, it's important that I'm being true to myself; it's a mutual respect and understanding without judgment.
Julien Decanali, a buyer at Barneys New York , echoes that sentiment. When a new piece does make it home, he explains, it's often a planned appearance. If I randomly come home with a Dries [Van Noten] coat on a bad day, it's war.
When it comes to his shopping habits, Decanali also notes the issue of inventory. I've adopted a similar approach as I adjust my wardrobe toward fewer, higher quality garments.
Each time I buy something new, I try to clear extra space by offloading at least one other piece. This not only saves space, but recoups some of the expense, as well. For someone used to copping clothes at will, this sounds like a compromise, but it also sets up healthier spending habits. These efforts to strike a balance also come through in how they talk about fashion with their girlfriends.
Decanali notes the clear gap in interest between him and his girlfriend, but views it as a positive. In past relationships, Mirtsopoulos says he's made fashion a key topic, but that his recent girlfriend's security in her own style helped him realize that it doesn't need to be. That's a common dynamic. Early on in relationships, people try to evangelize their interests.
0コメント