Man-skirt

Givenchy Fall 2012 Menswear, ©Style.com

#4 Modemuze x FASHIONCLASH blogpost

Man-skirt

by Rick van Os

There has been a double standard throughout the history of everyday fashion. Whereas women have gradually exchanged their skirts for trousers from the early nineteen-hundreds onwards, men haven’t taken up the opportunity (or have been able) to incorporate the skirt in their everyday apparel. Despite the valliant efforts made by fashion visionaries such as Jean Paul Gaultier, Vivienne Westwood, Dries van Noten and Walter van Beirendonck, the phenomenon of the man-skirt hasn’t found a raison d’être outside of the high-fashion discourse. Although effortlessly adopted as a symbol of anarchy by counter-cultural groups like punks and new romantics, one might still raise questions as to why the kilt, sarong or man-skirt has evidently failed to become an indespensible item in everyday men’s fashion.
When The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier was on exhibit at de Kunsthal Rotterdam in early 2013, Gaultier’s signature coned bra was probably his most sought-after piece. However, ample amount of attention should have been payed to his revolutionary, playfully gender-bending man-skirts dating back to 1985. Ever since Gaultier’s masculine interpretation of the skirt, established and up-and-coming fashion designers have actively taken up this concept as a starting point to question our wardrobe’s underlying gender binary.

Jean Paul Gaultier Fall 2013 Menswear, ©Style.com

To gain a deeper understanding as to why the man-skirt is, allegedly, an absolute faux-pas, one has to reckon that this stance is a remnant of a shift in cultural values that occured with the advent of the Victorian Era. It is namely in this particular time period that gender roles would be defined more sharply. As man and woman were confined to seperate spheres, only joining each other for breakfast and dinner, their respective garment adapted towards the spaces they inhabited. A Victorian woman’s domestic workload had become greatly reduced due to the presence of servants, this enabled them to dress in a less pragmatic fashion such as the crinoline. By contrast, as men began to occupy the public sphere exclusively, thereby making them visible for other men to see, their dress adapted in terms of general look and practicality. Moreover, as the Victorians began to develop a more sober taste in dress, it became highly disregarded for men to adorn themselves in bright colours and luxurious fabrics. Expanding on this principle of sobriety, the proper decorum for men had become suits, plain shirts and ties by the middle of the twentieth century.

Dries van Noten Fall 2015 Menswear, ©Style.com

When taking the above into consideration, it isn’t far-fetched to state that the skirt, or anything akin to a skirt, had irrevocably become a hallmark of feminity. Since the Victorian era we have come a long way in terms of women’s rights and gender equality, it is striking however that we still largely cling to Victorian standards in terms of everyday fashion. Our generation of designers and consumers is bestowed with the noble task of proving that the colour, form and materiality of our clothing is not necessarily a signifier of our gender identity. A viable point of departure would be to judge the man-skirt on the basis of its aesthetic, material and functional merits.

Modemuze verbindt op een online platform de mode- en kostuumcollecties van zeven Nederlandse musea met verhalen van mode- en kostuumliefhebbers als een bron van inspiratie voor een breed publiek. In samenwerking met FASHIONCLASH festival komt Modemuze de hele maand juni met een serie blogs rondom het thema van dit jaar: ‘Gender’. Neem voor een overzicht van alle blogs een kijkje op: modemuze.nl

Gender hits the catwalks

Topic of sexuality and gender in fashion is still perceived as controversial, however it cannot be prescribed as new. Jean Paul Gaultier has big interest in the trans-gender vision of the clothing, as well as division between sexes. He claimed that: “Except for the medieval codpiece and the bra, garments have never had a gender”. In 1985, Jean Paul Gaultier caused a shock in the fashion’s world by introducing the men-skirt – gossip has it, that fashion journalists and editors left the fashion show. 

Balancing on sexual border has been reached in many shows which have taken place in January. Due to upcoming FASHIONCLASH festival edition, our eyes seems to enrich with “gender-radar”, which is detecting any form of design, which goes beyond boundaries of sexual categorization. 

Prints! in fashion and costume history

stunning picture and creation
Mastori*Motwary Studio Couture
Fall 2011

Prints! In fashion and costume history 1750 - 2000


from 25.06 - 08.01.2012
MHM Fashion Museum Hasselt
Printed textile is a decorative art form, used for interiors as well as for clothing. The varieties of motifs often reflect the collective taste and Zeitgeist of a certain period. Printing textile is also a complex industrial process and as such dependend on innovation, mechanisation, research and technological progress.

European textile printing finds its origins in the India of 2000 B.C. Indian fabrics were introduced through trade (East Indian Company) to Europe. The attractive use of colours and motifs seduced the European public, hungry as it was for anything exotic.
The fabric was also a good alternative for heavy silk, wool and linen. The demand for these new fabrics quickly exceeded the supply: a booming copying economy of Indian fabrics was born. These Indiennes (Chintz) were adapted to European flavours.

Until the end of the 18th century motifs remained mainly derivations of the original floral pattern from India, but the industrial revolution at the beginning of the 19th century brought about radical change. Under the impulse of science and mechanisation, the printing of textiles became an industrial process still expanding today.

In contemporary fashion we find a variety of prints, depending on trends. They vary from references to historical patterns (landscapes, floral and bucolic figures) to innovative, experimental motifs. It became the trademark of a diversity of designers such as Emilio Pucci, Dries Van Noten, Hermès (carré) and Missoni.

Lenders: Musée de l’impression sur étoffes (Mulhouse), Musée de la Toile de Jouy (Jouy-en-Josas), Hermès (Paris), Royal Museum for Art and History (Brussels), Gemeentemuseum The Hague, Musée de la Vie Wallonne (Luik).


For more information: http://www.modemuseumhasselt.be

Karishma Shahani क श



Karishma'scollection in progress


What is your name? Karishma Shahani

What is the name of your label?
KARISHMA SHAHANI (LABEL क श)

Where did you study and when did you graduate? I graduated from the London College of Fashion, University of the Arts, London with a BA (Hons) in Fashion Design Technology June in 2010, before which I completed my BA(Hons) in Economics from Pune, India in 2007.

What inspires you as a designer? My surroundings. Influences are immense from the homeless person on the road, to cultural images across borders, my inspirations come from everyday things, anything that catches my eye, captures my imagination. It is just about falling in love with what I see. I am obsessed with collecting things, whether it is interesting pieces from travel or found objects they form a large inspirational database alongside a lot of photography of all things beautiful.

Who is your favorite designer? Why? There are many – Dries Van Noten for his beautiful cultural aesthetic in a very contemporary context. Manish Arora for the bold use of colour and textures. Christian Lacroix for how he puts pieces together with such contrasting qualities to make them look effortlessly classic. Issey Miyake for his innovative simplicity. Prada for the sheer respect the brand demands.

What can you bring to FASHIONCLASH Maastricht 2011? Contemporary Indian sensibilities and richness of craft from Asia along with a lot of drama and bucket loads of colour.

What do you expect from the FASHIONCLASH Maastricht 2011? An accepting audience.



Karishma's workplace



How did your experience with fashion started? When did you decide to be a fashion designer?

I can never pinpoint exactly when this happened it was an area I developed an interest in with time. I did want to be a pilot and then an archaeologist too. I have books in which I have been trying to draw figures with clothing that go back to when I was around 11 so it was always present somewhere sub- consciously. The simple fact of creating new things determines my passion for design. Fashion in particular because it is so close to our daily lives. I love how contextual it is and how it is a key indicator of changes in society over time.

What are your goals concerning your career? What are your ambitions? Where do you see yourself in the future?

The brand has only just started. I would like to see the Karishma Shahani label stand as a valued fashion label, creating a global Indian brand.





Karishma in her studio



 Edited by Natalia Serwanska