Masculin Féminin: Men have the right to wear women's clothes

The stereotypes associated with clothing, a great many, and we get to know them in childhood. "Boys - blue, girls - pink" - everyone knows about this imposed installation, which still exists today. Further more. Men are forced to face stamps about appearance as well as women. Our society is still sharpened by the fact that guys have to show strength, including appearance, and skirts, ruffles, laces and other elements that do not fit into this dogma are, in most cases, blamed. Despite the fact that unisex clothing has more than a dozen years, most people are suspicious of the idea that men and women can wear the same clothes. We asked five men of different professions to try on gender-neutral or women's clothing and tell how they feel in it and what they think about modern fashion.

Blouse Kenzo, 54 200 rub., KM20

Vitali

28 years old, chief programmer

I don’t really follow fashion and in my life I prefer to wear very simple, practical clothes - "like geek" shirts, metal-group T-shirts, rough shoes. I do not think that in my wardrobe something can drastically change. Personally, I do not know of a single store that would sell bright things for men, where, for example, you could buy some cool gypsy shirt. In the men's departments everything is very monotonous. I didn’t have any desire to wear women's clothes, but when I was offered to participate in the experiment, I liked the idea.

At the shooting itself, I did not feel much discomfort - it seems to me that the people around me were more confused than me. The vetements dress even had pockets! But to see myself in the mirror was unusual: there was a feeling that I was wearing a costume for Halloween. I suppose it would be awkward to walk in such clothes on the street, but being surrounded by people who find it cool is really fun. I have a shirt that we wear a pair with my girlfriend, but she is rather a unisex.

The dress Vetements, 114 600 rubles, KM20; Boots Alberto guardiani, 39 960 rubles, GUM; Chains Maria stern 18 000 rub. and 15 000 rub., TSUM

The clothes that are fancifully feminine, the guy will attract a lot of attention in everyday life, but I do not need it. The fact that boys and girls begin to wear the same clothes can have an impact on society, but it is difficult to predict which one. I personally do not really care, I try not to judge people in general, and even more so by their appearance or clothing. I live in Israel, and we have not much changed in terms of street fashion: they all wear the same jeans that they bought at 18 years old. If you compare people on the streets of big cities, where I spend most of my time, no doubt Muscovites wear brighter and eye-catching things, while in Tel Aviv people look more relaxed.

Turtleneck Nina donis, 49 800 rub., KM20

Victor

61, Head of the company "communicator"

My everyday wardrobe is determined by the environment in which I need to be on this day: sometimes I have to be in a suit and tie, or suit and always without a tie, or in a jacket and jeans. There is such an English expression "I wear many hats" ("I wear different hats", that is, I do different things) - it reflects my lifestyle. The only thing is, I don’t like recognizable stamps, and lately I prefer monochrome things, without prints. I can not rebuild on the dark colors: bright shades - this is mine.

The Nina Donis things that were on the set are very beautiful, I could put them on a trendy party. I would love to have it all in my wardrobe, especially a sweatshirt with stones. Dresses are generally an interesting story. I myself, for example, have two Jalabians (traditional muslim dress. - Approx. ed): one of camel's hair, the other of cotton. This is an amazingly comfortable thing in the summer.

I think that I follow fashion, but I don’t put any effort into it. I have a couple of designer friends, whose shows I go to, but this is more of a friendship. I do not particularly delve into the industry. Quite often there are situations when I put something on, and they say to me: "Oh, this is fashionable!" - and I understand that it peeped somewhere. It's just such a cloud - if you follow the outside world, you notice that too.

The man, of course, has changed a lot lately, and this is the characteristic sign of this change. When I first came to a cosmetic store 30 years ago in Rome or Vienna, the male department was almost ten times smaller than the female one. Now they are the same. That is, it became customary to take care of yourself, choose clothes.

Men's fashion does not seem boring to me, although I remember when my wife and I went to the store, she said: "What men's clothes you have are beautiful," and I answered: "And how beautiful you are." From the inside there is always a feeling that something is missing, that everything is boring. And from the outside it may seem, on the contrary, that men's fashion allows itself more, it has more variations.

The dress Nina donis, 37 200 rubles, KM20; Rings Maria Stern,8 000 rub. and 10 000 rub., TsUM

If you look globally, now the main trend is the abolition of “can” and “not”. Everything is possible: any colors, any combinations, any styles - this is the first. And secondly, clothing is becoming less and less formal. Today, in different situations, from going to the opera to the meeting of the board of directors of the bank, you can see people dressed in ways that they would not have come to their office 15 years ago on an informal Friday.

I think that in fashion, as in everything - in art, music, literature - there is no mainstream. There are rather several coexisting trends, and you yourself choose what suits you, for your subculture, for your behavior. Or as it happens in my case: you go to one place by one person, to another - by another.

Coat Lemaire, 86,800 rubles, KM20; Hoodie - Model Property

Andrew

25 years old, photo editor

Everything is simple with my clothes: there are identical white T-shirts, there are identical black hoodies. A place to experiment - pants. Six years ago, I wanted to find baggy pants, and in the mass market then only skinny and chinos were sold. So I got into the whirlpool of ordering clothes from the catalog - only there I managed to find my “irrelevant” jeans that were worn on a 50 man on the picture. Ninja "and the second pair of baggy pants, this time demonstrated on a graceful lady.

I have long wondered why in our time it is generally possible to divide into men's and women's clothing. After the 20th century, especially after the 90s, how is it possible for a man to be outraged, whose navel is exposed by a circumcised shirt? It seems that women won their right to pants hundreds of years ago, but why is the image of a guy in a dress in 2016 marginalized? I do not understand: for what reason do I stumble upon aggressive looks when I have a pink kangaroo on me?

Sweater Hood by air, 35 000 rub., SV Moscow; shorts are the property of the model; sneakers Nike, 8 930 rub., Brandshop

I do not follow what is happening on the podiums, but I think the designers are still expanding the boundaries of what is permissible. Several years ago, many in my tape cherished the avant-garde collection of J. W. Anderson (some were delighted, others lamented) strange dresses for men. Today, the same designer heads the conservative fashion house, slowly changing it from the inside and contributing to the “legalization” of the new male image. It seems to me that this case is the rule rather than the exception.

Coat Acne studios, 98 800 rub., TSUM

Glory

26 years old, model

The situation when the girl takes the shirt from her boyfriend has long become commonplace. She reflected on women's fashion, and subsequently on the assortment of democratic brands. Now there is no such strong division into masculine and feminine, as before: everything mixes. Brands benefit from making clothes suitable for both sexes.

Paying attention to the recent collaboration of expensive brands with the mass market, you can see that they, for example, have the same prints for guys and for girls. Girls buy men, boys buy women, and no one bothers. For example, a sweatshirt is absolutely universal and gender-neutral. Every season he seems to be getting longer and longer. I would not be surprised that in 20 years all these dresses for guys will be the norm.

Tunic Craig green, 30 800 rub., KM20; trousers Craig green, 38 400 rubles, KM20; sneakers Puma, 10 990 rub., Brandshop

Once I was shopping with a friend, and we went into the women's departments. In one of them, I liked a pink women's sweater. I was going to take it, but I suddenly got into my head: "I'll go to the cashier to punch, and what people will think." But then, after a couple of days, I still went and bought. My example is rather an exception - usually guys do not look at women's clothing. Impact internal barriers. But when I come to the world brand store, for example, in Acne, I look at both male and female - this is interesting. You feel like at the exhibition: I want to miss nothing. Every day I prefer black things. Combining a dark top with a dark bottom is easy and convenient. In the things that were on me during the shooting, I would go to the club, for a birthday or a meeting with friends, but hardly to work.

Shirt MGSM, 17 000 rub., Rehab Shop

Nikita

19 years old, photographer

It seems to me that fashion houses are moving away from the division into male and female. Male fashion itself is not as predictable as it used to be: it is rethought to gradually get rid of stereotypes. There are women's clothing that does not look corny. Progressive society is trying to remove gender differences from people's thinking, and fashion, on the one hand, responds to this, and on the other, it contributes to this. The younger generation is no longer so dependent on conventions, which allows you to choose more vivid, noticeable things that emphasize individuality. Boys no longer think the wording "a real man would not wear such a thing."

I myself prefer the most practical clothes, and for me it does not matter where she comes from. Looking at women's things, I also repeatedly had the idea that I could adapt them to my wardrobe. For example, I could not find wide pants at my height, so I had to go to a women's store. Monki pants, in which I came, just from there.

At the shooting itself, I felt a little anxious and funny, but this is most likely due to the fact that it is unusual for me to be on the other side of the lens. I am a photographer myself and for the first time felt myself as a model. I liked the things themselves - they are unusual, except that the jacket with flowers was somewhat cramped. But to light it up at such a party is now my little dream.

Jacket Comme des garcons, 179 000 rub., ZUM

Addresses: Kuznetsky Most 20, ul. Kuznetsky Most, 20, tel. +7 (495) 623-78-88; SVMoscow, Malaya Molchanovka, 6, tel. +7 (495) 215-53-51; Central Department Store, Petrovka, 2, tel. +7 (495) 933-73-00; Brandshop, Petrovsky blvd, 21, tel. +7 (495) 544-57-70; Rehabshop, B. Kozikhinsky per., 19/6, tel. +7 (916) 437-54-57; GUM, Red Square., 3, line 2, tel. +7 (495) 620-31-49

Revision Thanks to the space of Ox melz for help in organizing the shooting.