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The Saint Laurent FW23 Gender Blur Is the Return to the Origins We Were Waiting For
When Hedi Slimane controversially abandoned ‘Yves’ from the brand name Yves Saint Laurent, it felt like an erasure of the hallmark of YSL. The momentous decision aspired to modernise and reify the label independent of Yves’ name.
Anthony Vaccarello compellingly evinced the Saint Laurent quintessence in the Winter ’23 menswear show. Inside the aptly chosen Bourse de Commerce, the neoclassical cupola reflected the sophistication foregrounded in this collection. Vaccarello mediates the convergence of classical YSL with the contemporary Saint Laurent consumer. For his first menswear exhibition in Paris, the Belgian designer sought to unite the man and woman just like YSL once did when he became the first couturier to create RTW, and for both genders!
Gender Blur
In this ensemble, Vaccarello sang of evolution for the Maison, where timeless silhouettes of both genders merge to form the Saint Laurent wearer. Overcoats swept the panoptical runway daringly to the chiaroscuro refrain created by the brand’s personal maestro, SebastiAn, and performed live by Paul Prier. Such classical influences were replicated through the romantic construction of the garments. Models were clad in the revamped YSL design – Le Smoking. Initially, this tuxedo epitomised the gentleman’s club coats worn by Victorian Englishmen.
However, 1966 YSL ingeniously subverted this custom for women to empower them. Vaccarello does the same for men through the gaping blouses that marry at the waist to a loosely pleated cummerbund.
A couple of these were seen orbiting the runway but in different variations, such as silk and diaphanous chiffon. They all were an ardent display of Vaccarello’s aims as creative director. Seeing the models in bishop’s sleeves billowed me back to the Romantic Era. Bathing in the reminisce of beauty, poetry and art.
Statement Galore
Aside from the deep-delving chest-bearing blouses, this showcase had a few other statements. In the first three looks, models embarked on the catwalk with a theatrical bow around the neck. Vaccarello modified the cravat, worn by men to embellish the neck, into something more flamboyant and feminine. The sculptural bows that lay diagonally across their chests are similar to the ones we have seen in women’s fashion for decades.
It is a timeless and perennial feature of saccharine femininity that resurged in Spring 2022 with Giambattista Valli, CDG and Richard Quinn. Surprisingly, translating this into menswear swiftly rendered it void of the adolescent connotations it usually bears. The models looked straight out of a 19th-century romance novel on their way to whisk you off. First, engaging in intimate ballroom dance and next, sheltering you from the crowd through the backdoors where you share a kiss under the midnight stars.
The Spirit of Saint Laurent
Clearly, Vaccarello has mastered the spirit of YSL: simple elegance and sophistication. An indulgence. A nod towards YSL’s North African roots was weaved into this collection with the revival of the capuche and head scarves.
This hood drapes intentionally around the models’ faces, and the rest flows down their shoulders.
The designer seemingly incorporates silhouettes resembling the Chunni, a shawl worn by Indian women around their heads and necks. The chiffon draping across models’ chests and bodies also purposefully grapples with opacity. Drapes advertently form a translucent triangle, teasing a little skin at a model’s abdomen. Another example of this was the closing look worn by Jum Kuochnin. His bare chest contrasted with the shawl that drifted with his feet and his slightly oversized suit.
Saint Laurent Debonair
This season maintained the gender-bending principles and materials from their summer collection. Both of them form parallels with each other. The universal polarity of the Saint Laurent Debonair. This is the polarity that YSL wanted and championed in his work. My only demur over this is the limitations of such silhouettes and formality in men’s (and women’s) clothing. Many seem to draw the line of gender fluidity in formalwear, revolutionising suits and trench coats. It will be interesting to see what direction Vaccarello will take Saint Laurent next.
