The recent embrace by designers towards both genders, blending the masculine and feminine attributes into one, is certainly one of fashion’s talking points. Taking a dive into the Fall 20/21 Menswear collections, Rick Owens – known for his gothic eye and cult-like status – robs us of what we once knew about the ‘mad man.’ His collection, entitled the crucifixion, acknowledged a man’s rage and gave a nod towards the tense, darker elements of our times.
Meanwhile, Paris’ up and coming new name, Charaf Tajer, with his blend of chic, old-school glamour, embellishes a softer man in his ‘Grand Pix’ collection. In this he made the ‘macho man’ image dissolve in a glossy 1970s glow.
Eyeing both of these collections side-by-side, we can witness this new acceptance of the two faces of how men are perceived by the fashion industry: softer men with swagger and glamour and the rough, rugged variety. Here we explore the two-faced man further.
Nothing says danger and angst quite like leather and rips. Rick Owens molds a leather body suit to the male physique with the accent of his chunky, Chuck Taylors, mixing together a shriek at the suppressed seething that men hold, exemplified in streetwear. Known under his title of, The Lord of Darkness, Owens admires every man’s sexy dark side. As Highsnobiety puts it, “his gothic aesthetic boasts a fashion-sportswear hybrid with gender neutral design.”
Perhaps his polar opposite is Casablanca’s Charaf Tajer, who offered men wearing pearls for his Monaco-inspired, Formula One racing collection. At his brand’s core we have the image of a rich playboy such as, Aristotle Onassis. Tajer creates this ‘pretty boy’ narrative with pastel trousers, silk neck ties and cashmere terry cloth tracksuits.
Tajer explained to Vogue, “When we play with pearls, with prints, with silk and all of that, we [take] the macho man into a situation of more softness.” He believes where you share your vulnerability, you reveal your power.
The question is, will more designers feel inclined to contribute to this growing gender fluid creative? The ‘Gethsemane’ collection was surely adhering to the death-metal, hip-high weapon boots message, further illustrating Owens’ riff on the universal rage in every man’s core.
It not only mastered an emotional realness within himself and men in general, but dug into a balance between hard-headed, vigor masculinity and sexy, body-fitted masculinity. Whereas Tajer allowed the gentler side of boys to blossom, glamorizing one’s feelings within a pearled and tied gentleman, there is still a sense of uncertainty from Rick Owens’. The latter chose the location outside stone steps of a domed church in Venice to show his collection with the help of a smoke machine to provide trailing clouds of hellish vapour. While it was evidently less formal and cut-throat to a traditional catwalk, the Gethsemane collection highlighted the effectiveness of a live event.
Ultimately this show championed the magical qualities between a live fashion show and a digital fashion presentation. ‘Grand Prix’ versus ‘Gethsemane’ which was the winner?
The harsher side of man versus the delicate. Feelings and design aesthetic couldn’t be more different in terms of the platform, just as Mr. Tajer could attest to. Whilst everyone would agree they would love nothing better than to attend that post-race win party with honey dipped friends and the most comfortably lush, luxury carpets you have ever seen. Casablanca’s focus on quality and materialism bled through the youthful mystique. It gave us a peek into the French-Moroccan designer’s mind. He certainly holds no fear to channeling the 70s dream boy we all wish we knew. This is like a bright spark; however, the darker element Rick Owens offers is always lingering.
Now more than ever, the world clings to optimism but as Rick reminds us, “that dark element has not disappeared…and the fact that it came so close, this moral war, is horrifying.”
What do you think? Will people admire or disapprove of such confrontational realism/escapism?
With a seedling of a ‘timeless après-sports aesthetic’ and an empire of controversial gothics, these two Parisian based designers make their point whilst destroying the stereotypical gender codes and sculpting a new way to bejewel the male body. Ultimately, fashion is never bound by anything but the creator’s mind. Tajer and Owens scream originality. And no regrets. Whether it’s pretty boys in silk ties and pearls by day and cowskin thigh-highs and slash-arm overcoats with white underwear by night, a man can always switch from an angel to a demon.
