Women's Season - Is unisex clothing truly unisex?

2015 has been a marvellous year in terms of freedom. So far this year, we have seen the legalisation of gay marriage in America and a huge awareness being drawn to the transgender community. Fashion being influenced by social movements has obviously been impacted by these changes and gender blurring has become more apparent within the industry.

Catwalks such as Jean Paul Gaultier’s Paris Couture Show have embraced gender blurring through the Australian-born model, Andreja Pejic. Pejic, a transgender woman, who until 2014 was billed as an androgynous male model was discovered just before she turned 17 while working a shift at McDonalds. Two years on, it would appear that Pejic captivated audiences through the JPG show in a wedding dress. Since the Gaultier show, Pejic has featured in a number of catwalks modelling womenswear.

[Source: МОЛОКО: Flickr]

Couture wear is made for the tall, twiggy and flat bodies that most women (even models) don’t have. Ideally couture is the perfect fit for a lean/lanky man. As a result of this, it would appear easier for men to adapt into walking in women’s shows rather than the other way round.

Gender-mixing has heightened significantly – from Coach to Jeremy Scott seeming to cast women to walk the runway to show their 2016 spring collections for men. 10 women out of the 55 models at Gucci’s Men’s Spring/Summer 2016 Fashion Show were seen to embrace gender blurring. The only real gender signifier was whether the model was wearing nail polish.

[Source: Eduardo Rohner: Flickr]

According to Gucci’s press release, this season’s show was titled “détournement” – French for “hijacking”. ‘Détournement’ is explained as a political movement. “It’s strength lies in the possibility of transgressing what already exists and offering glimpses of new possibilities of freedom and emancipation.” With the number of women in their show – and men with unapologetically feminine features, it’s not hard to read this as a metaphor for the genderless fashion movement. Valentino’s Pierpaolo Picciolo echoed the same sentiment in The New York Time: “We don’t think that we need new labels. I don’t think you need to show what you are. I don’t care about men and women – I just care about people.”

One thing has become clear within the industry: the representation of women during Men’s Fashion Month has gone from one-time appearance to supporting role. Speculation now occurs to whether similar casting will correspond with the women’s shows this September.  

What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.

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