Outre charm of gender fluidity

2020 is indeed a testament to the changing times that are breaking conventional gender norms.

By Priyamvada Rana · Dec 2020 · 4 min read

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Gender-fluid fashion has become a buzzword after singer Harry Styles’ avant-garde Vogue shoot of December 2020. From Styles’ donning Gucci’s frothy lace-trimmed skirt paired with blazers to wearing Wales Bonner kilted skirt and slaying in a Victoriana crinoline over a suit, the singer took the androgynous stream of fashion to its zenith. While Harry’s shoot might have been the most searched and contentious with people debating of it pioneered gender fluidity or was a ‘queer-bait’ trap, the singer is not the only one to show his eccentric demeanour.

While Styles ended 2020 with this look, actor Billy Porter harbingered this year breaking heteronormative notion in men's fashion. His ultra-feminine avatar in satin sea-foam Hogan McLaughlin jumpsuit at Critics Choice awards in January championed cross-dressing.

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Cut to 2019, a look at actor Cody Fern’s gender-neutral look at Golden Globes where he looks suave in that black semi-sheer shirt is a testament to the changing times that this year seeped in menswear.

Androgynous combines various gender elements together, neutral is devoid of precise gender elements while cross-cutting is all about radically donning opposite gender’s style.

All three celebrities donned unisex fashion that is branched out into androgynous, neutral and cross-cutting style. Androgynous combines various gender elements, neutral is devoid of precise gender elements while cross-cutting is all about radically donning opposite gender’s style.

With such nitty natty styles donned by celebrities, men's couture has become more gender-fluid, neutral and diverse. 2020 is indeed a testament to the changing times that are breaking conventional gender norms and more is to see in the coming future.

However, the roots of unisex fashion were laid back in the 1960’s when notions related to the social construct of gender came under public scrutiny. In her book ‘Sex and Unisex: Fashion, Feminism and Sexual Revolution’, professor Jo Paoletti mentions how unisex clothing was a corrective to the rigid gender stereotyping of 1950s after World War II. The book mentions how unisex clothing of 1960s and 1970s aspired to “blur or cross-gender lines”.

In 1960’s french couture designers like Pierre Cardin, Andre Courrèges, and Paco Rabanne embarked on a ‘Space Age’ in their Paris runways that showed models in sleek, minimalist, often unisex attire made in high-end synthetic fabric.

On the other front, the ‘Peacock Revolution’ of the 60s and 70s pushed gender contours by arming men with chiffon, silk, flamboyant prints, effeminate silhouettes that broadened the spectrum of how we view femininity and masculinity.

The waves and revolutions of the past have indeed inspired the celebrities of today. So when we come across a picture of musician Jimi Hendrix donning poet blouses or hippy fringes shirts in 1970’s or the more recent Harry Styles dressing, then surely gender fluidity, neutrality and cross-cutting has time travelled. Here’s a look at brands and their eccentric trendy styles that are dictating the rules today in menswear.

Asymmetric Knitted tops

The high-end fashion of asymmetric knitted tops might look like an anomaly in traditional men's fashion wear. However, Telfar’s men's Fall 2020 collection embraced the oddity in its amusingly idiosyncratic designs that showed black and off white knitted asymmetric woollen tops worn by male models.

The New York-based fashion house thrived gender fluidity with these zany tops that look strikingly peculiar and daunting.

One needs highly imaginative thinking to include crop tops and sheer skirts in menswear. However, in Palomo Spain SS20 collection characterised by flowy laced Organza skirts and a wide variety of fringed long and crop tops, a certain kind of eroticism was added to the menswear couture. The collection was bold, exuberant and exuded craftsmanship that lined up with the gender-fluid vision.

Heavyweight brands like Dior put out a collection that was a vivid concoction of bright colours, floral motifs that merged French and American identities in its fall 2020 menswear collection. The outfits were an ode to counterculture and exploration of identities marked by youthfulness, vitality and spirit. The collection showed fluid jackets in tropical wools adorned with vibrant spring of flowers emanating a cushy and gender-neutral look.

Ruffled Chine shirt with jabot

From the house of Gucci comes Gucci Mx, a new section of the brand’s website that presents non-binary and gender-fluid clothing. The site mentions various products that are unisex like a suede bomber jacket or metallic green trousers but the riffled blouses like Chine shirt with a jabot is the most striking clothing in the gender-neutral category. The versatile clothing can be paired with skirts, jeans, palazzos, culottes and many other bottom wear.