Men's high fashion has finally achieved total wokeness
For those of us who are not fashionistas, the doings of the big fashion houses seem both far away and pointless. Nevertheless, there are people who care deeply about them. Moreover, what starts on the runway ends in Hollywood. And Hollywood, whether one likes it or not, still has cultural reach.
That's why, because high fashion occasionally does trickle down to us, the ordinary folk, it's sometimes worth checking in to see what's going on. Before doing so, a reminder of what men's high fashion once looked like in America via Hollywood:
And now back to what's coming to America from Milan. Gucci has decided that masculinity is a bad thing and that fashion is the weapon by which to destroy it. In an article bearing the powerful title "Gucci Takes Toxic Masculinity to Task for Fall 2020," we learn the following:
Exactly five years have passed since the world caught a first glimpse at what the new Gucci would look like under then-new (and unknown) creative director Alessandro Michele. Famously put together in a matter of days, the collection shook the fashion landscape to its core, ushering in a new era of gender fluidity and romanticism for menswear.
So for his Fall 2020 men's collection in Milan today, Michele boiled down his vision for Gucci to its essence. He wanted to capture the purity of childhood, back when carefree days weren't tainted by societal norms, particularly those relating to masculine ideals.
The notes handed out to attendees at a show that had as its actual purpose selling clothes (in other words, it's the rag trade) read like something you'd find submitted to an academic competition for the best "woke" jargon:
"In a patriarchal society, masculine gender identity is often moulded by violently toxic stereotypes," read the show notes. "A dominant, winning, oppressive masculinity model is imposed on babies at birth. Attitudes, languages and actions end up progressively conforming to a macho virility ideal that removes vulnerability and dependence. Any possible reference to femininity is aggressively banned, as it is considered a threat against the complete affirmation of a masculine prototype that allows no divergencies."
And once again, there's that whiff of pedophilia that seems constantly to hang about the rich and powerful in 2020 (and that gives strength to people's feeling that QAnon is on to something):
The childhood theme became quite prevalent before the first model even walked out. Invitations to the show were written with the apparent handwriting of a five-year-old, inviting guests to attend their 5th birthday party.
Cary Grant, a nation turns its lonely eyes to you:
h/t Ace of Spades