Gucci’s creative director said men are turning to “bright and feminine” outfits to express their “freedom” and break gender stereotypes.
Alessandro Michele, 49, has been credited with creating gender-bending fashion on the catwalk since he spearheaded the Gucci update in 2015.
The Fashion Week darling told the Times that he loves seeing men wear colorful and flamboyant outfits, including skirts or dresses, to question the concept of masculinity.
Stars such as Harry Styles, Andrew Garfield and singer Lil Nas X have donned daring red carpet looks in recent years, flirting with items traditionally considered feminine, including dresses, skirts and satin pink blouses.
Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele, 49, has been credited with creating gender-bending fashion on the catwalk since he spearheaded Gucci’s revamp in 2015 (pictured: British Fashion Awards 2015 in London).
Michel said celebrities like his friend Harry Styles, who famously raised eyebrows when he wore a Gucci dress on the cover of Vogue in 2020, are paving the way for regular men to also experiment with gender-bending fashion (pictured) : Met Gala in 2019)
And Michele believes that men enjoy this newfound freedom, they should be more feminine than was acceptable in the past.
He added that celebrities, including his friend Harry Styles, who famously raised eyebrows when he wore a Gucci dress on the cover of Vogue in 2020, are paving the way for regular men to also experiment with gender-bending fashion.
“Recently, men have been afraid to show who they really are,” the designer said.
“We invented the idea of ’human power’ in the 20th century, and now we are destroying ‘human power’. This means you are free. You can cry, laugh, hug another man because you are friends. The state of masculinity has changed,” he added.
Michel, whose fans include Idris Elba, Snoop Dogg, Jared Leto, ASAP Rocky and Tyler the Creator, said he’s happy when people use the term “bright” to describe how stars dress on the red carpet.
The designer, who dressed Andrew Garfield in an embroidered pink suit adorned with flowers for a recent event, said that bright means alive and that men celebrate life and freedom when they choose to wear it.
Michelle brought gender fluidity to the runway. Pictured: one of his models wearing a skirt during the Exquisite Gucci show at Milan Fashion Week on February 25.
He added that when he designs for Gucci, he does not think about any particular gender, but about humanity as a whole.
He explained that his approach to fashion is more fluid and his work is based on the faces and intentions behind the clothes rather than the bodies.
Michele is not afraid to use bright colors for his costume collection, left. Gucci is one of the partners of the V&A Fashioning Masculinities exhibition. Singer and actor Ollie Alexander (right) attended a private screening.
The designer, who came to terms with his sexual identity as a gay man in Catholic Italy in the 1980s, said he wanted to represent people who would previously be considered “freaks” and shunned by their lifestyle, although he scoffed at it. the idea that people think he caused gender variability.
He added that stars like Harry Styles make other men feel like they too can indulge in gender-bending fashion when they see the former One Director singer wearing dresses and skirts.
The skirts were presented at Milan Fashion Week in February. Michele has always worked with feminine and masculine elements mixed together.
Pictured left and right: two models in eye-catching fur coats at the Gucci fashion show in Milan in February.
And Gucci’s most recent numbers have proven him right, as sales figures from parent company Gucci Kering show the brand’s revenue has risen from £3bn in 2015 to £8bn in 2021.
The dress Harry wore for Vogue, which played a key role in the debate about men and gender-bending clothing, was donated by the designer to the Victoria and Albert Museum ahead of the upcoming Fashioning Masculinities exhibition.
The exhibition, in partnership with Gucci, which runs until November 6, explores how designers, models and artists have created masculinity over the years and the changing nature of what it means to be a man.
Alessandro Borghi (left) in a pastel pink suit and Jared Leto (right) in a checkered black and white Gucci version at the designer’s show in Milan.