MALE FASHION

Male fashion. It seems fairly easy due to the restricted number of garments available to men. However, try to make it look "sophisticated yet casual" and you will see how tricky it gets.

Ages ago, fashion was a crucial aspect of men's life - take as an example French king Louis XIV, aka Le Roi Soleil (The Sun King). He might have been one of the first male fashion trendsetters and victims (the guy even wore high heels).

uh lala... what a leg... . Louis XIV

Then, with Hollywood's golden era we gained quite a few style icons: Clarke Gable, Cary Grant, Humphrey Bogart, Gregory Peck or James Dean. They all had their individual style and amazing personality that filled their tailored suits impeccably.

up : Humphrey Bogart, Clark Gable; down: James Dean, Cary Grant.

Soon after, appeared James Bond, the charismatic character of Ian Fleming's series that brought to the big screen gave rise to probably the biggest product placement in the history of cinematography. 007 is an agent that looks tres chic even in the most unsuitable conditions and wears tuxedo like no one else.

Nowadays, there are only few outstanding male style icons. George Clooney comes to mind almost immediately. His style reminds us of the old Hollywood glamour and seems highly influenced by Clark Gable. Likewise, his Ides of March co-star, Ryan Gosling likes to suit up bringing some contemporary feel to the old-school style he sports. Chuch Bass, though a fictional character of the Gossip Girl TV series, is one of the New York's most fashionable males, visibly inspired by Cary Grant and Gregory Peck.

up: Ryan Gosling; down: Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick), George Clooney.

I would also like to draw attention to the style of an actor whose name does not really pop up when you think "fashion" - however, there is something about his outfits that makes his style interesting and refreshing - Robert Pattinson. He usually is too casual but during the public events he transforms into this impeccably dressed man, in suits by high end designers (most likely Gucci). I mean, not many people could pull off this maroon suit, but he did. He seems not to care about looks an d somehow ends up looking fabulous.

If you follow The Satorialist's blog, you might assume that the best male fashion happens in Milan. And you're probably right. Italian men pay a lot of attention to their style. However, well-dressed males may also be found in New York, London, Paris... and probably in your city as well, if you look carefully enough.


from The Satorialist: 1) New York, 2) Milan, 3) Paris: Stefano Tonchi, the editor-in-chief of W magazine.