Sexy is absolutely not a dirty word, but it’s become a grubbily charged subject. In our post-Harvey world, even Victoria’s Secret pretends its brand is about wellness (ha!). Masculine sexuality (especially hetero) is treading softly in 2018. So props to Donatella Versace for taking a long, hard look at various masculine archetypes and attempting to skew the lens a little. To turn the hotness up again for those who want more to fantasize about than avocado toast. And just as importantly, to provide outfits for those who want to feel fantasize-able.
This menswear collection was presented against a complementary women’s capsule—not Resort—the better to give a sense of the brand’s total world. Tonight, beneath a gabled roof of unseasonably late hothouse wisteria, Versace’s men and women ran through a suggestive riot of stereotypes. First came the power suit—oh cursed garment of our time—here refreshed by being placed oversize over denim and T-shirts printed with the season’s tabloid print (which I heard some historically challenged showgoer bemoaning for its similarity to Supreme’s box logo).
Printed python (not real, folks) came red in shrunken denim-shaped casual wear, and monochrome in looser, skater-ish shapes. Oversize pin-striped denim-effect workwear was accessorized by women’s handbags—tiny little things—taken from the women’s mainline collection but here reused as a gender-confident cross-body fanny pack. Riotous florals and twisting-chain archive pieces were charged with a sense of bolero confidence: Apparently “feminine” decorations like ruffle-hemmed T-shirts and crystal-embroidered pants were presented with swagger—clothes that demanded testosterone to conquer.
This collection was often more queer eye than straight guy, but it was never exclusively either/or. The white section—in which decoration was dialed down to zero, with the emphasis placed solely on silhouette and texture—plus the two fluorescent suits, were less about orientation than they were about confidence.
In her press release quote Donatella Versace said: “These are men who do not care about the rules and that is exactly what I love.” Yes, well. Rules are actually pretty important for men right now. But by showing us a few rules we are allowed to break, Versace was doing all men a service this evening.
