The Male Fashion Bias Mr. Mark Neighbour A Practice-Led Masters by Research Degree Faculty of Creative Industries Queensland University of Technology Discipline: Fashion Year of Submission: 2008 Key Words Male fashion Clothing design Gender Tailoring Clothing construction Dress reform Innovation Design process Contemporary menswear Fashion exhibition - 2 - Abstract Since the establishment of the first European fashion houses in the nineteenth century the male wardrobe has been continually appropriated by the fashion industry to the extent that every masculine garment has made its appearance in the female wardrobe. For the womenswear designer, menswear’s generic shapes are easily refitted and restyled to suit the prevailing fashionable silhouette. This, combined with a wealth of design detail and historical references, provides the cyclical female fashion system with an endless supply of “regular novelty” (Barthes, 2006, p.68). Yet, despite the wealth of inspiration and technique across both male and female clothing, the bias has largely been against menswear, with limited reciprocal benefit. Through an exploration of these concepts I propose to answer the question; how can I use womenswear patternmaking and construction technique to implement change in menswear design? - 3 - Statement of Original Authorship The work contained in this thesis has not previously been submitted for a degree or diploma at any other higher educational institution. To the best of my knowledge and belief, the thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference is made. Signed: Mark L Neighbour Dated: - 4 - Acknowledgements I wish to thank and acknowledge everyone who supported and assisted this project. In particular I express gratitude to: My supervisory team, Kathleen Cattoni and Prof. Suzi Vaughan for their enthusiasm, support, patience and belief QUT Creative Industries Faculty for the MA scholarship and ongoing support My fellow Fashion practice-led post-grads Paula Dunlop, Madeline King, Dean Brough and Susan Sewell for helping to keep the joy of making alive and for their distractive and supportive abilities Carla Binotto for her endless enthusiasm and attention to detail Patricia Howlie for always being there to listen – and having a landline Wendy Armstrong for her generosity of spirit and understanding All those who helped bring my final exhibition to fruition; in particular Lubi Thomas, Matthew Seneviratne and Antony Peloso Madeleine Vionnet, “the greatest dressmaker of the twentieth century” for having lived to create such a wealth of enticing, confusing and inspirational garments and Betty Kirke for her determination to bring Vionnet’s work into the lives of clothing practitioners My sister Barbara and my mother Delma Neighbour whose love, commonsense and resourceful determination inspired my own joy of making - 5 - (Intentionally left blank) - 6 - Table of Contents Table of Figures 8 Introduction 11 The research question 12 Part 1 – Where do we start and how do we get there? Interpretive Paradigm & Methodology 14 The where and why of gender 16 Part 2 – Where did we come from and how did we get here? The serious business of dressing – A technical history of modern menswear 19 Is this where we should be? – Male dress reform 22 Where can I get one of those? – Innovation in menswear 29 Where are we now? – Contemporary menswear 31 Part 3 – Where do we want to go today? Design process and creative practice 36 Conclusion 49 Appendix 50 References 51 - 7 - Table of Figures Figure 1. 15 Fringed “Body hair” bodysuits 2007 Image photographed by Leon Frainey Figure 2. 15 Male skirt – Jean Paul Gaultier Spring/Summer 2008 Retrieved March 21 2008 from www.farm3.static.flickr.com Figure 3. 21 George Delas’s 1839 drafting invention, the “somatometer” Image 1993 Flammarion Figure 4. 23 Dr. Gustave Jaeger Retrieved April 17 2007 from www.fashion-era.com/images Figure 5. 24 Thayaht wearing a tuta – diagram of garment design/construction Image 1993 Flammarion/Private collection Figure 6. 25 Members of the Men’s Dress Reform Party c.1930 Image 2001 Flammarion/Getty Images Figure 7. 28 Giorgio Armani Spring /Summer 1996 Image 1996 Christophe Kutner Figure 8. 32 Aitor Throup drawings and finished garments Retrieved May 5 2008 from www.maricazottino.com Figure 9 33 Greg Lagola – “One-piece” jacket Image 2007 Surface Publishing Figure 10 34 Greg Lagola – “One-piece” jacket spread flat Image 2007 Surface Publishing Figure 11. 37 Shirt Block Construction 1870 Image 1965 Theatre Arts Books Figure 12. 37 Shirt Block Construction 2006 Image 2006 Blackwell Publishing Figure 13. 38 The basic shirt block “components” – back, front and sleeves 2008 Image by Mark Neighbour - 8 - Table of Figures (cont.) Figure 14. 38 The reconfigured components 2007 Image by Mark Neighbour Figure 15. 38 The final reconfigured block design template 2007 Image by Mark Neighbour Figure 16. 39 Designs based on reconfigured shirt design template 2008 Image by Mark Neighbour Figure 17. 41 Traditional pant block 2007 Image 2007 Blackwell Publishing Figure 18. 41 Reconfigured pant patterns 2008 Image by Mark Neighbour Figure 19. 43 Black voile shirt 2008 Image photographed by Mark Neighbour Figure 20. 44 White linen shirt 2008 Image photographed by Mark Neighbour Figure 21. 45 Wool jersey vest 2008 Image photographed by Mark Neighbour Figure 22. 46 Wool coat 2008 Image photographed by Mark Neighbour Figure 23. 46 Fleece jacket 2008 Image photographed by Mark Neighbour Figure 24. 46 Knit jumper 1008 Image photographed by Mark Neighbour Figure 25. 47 The Male Fashion Bias Exhibition. Image photographed by Leon Frainey Figure 26. 48 Wool jersey t-shirt Image photographed by Mark Neighbour - 9 - (Intentionally left blank) - 10 - Introduction Since the establishment of the first European fashion houses in the nineteenth century the male wardrobe has been continually appropriated by the fashion industry to the extent that every masculine garment has made its appearance in the female wardrobe. For the womenswear designer, menswear’s generic shapes are easily refitted and restyled to suit the prevailing fashionable silhouette. This, combined with a wealth of design detail and historical references, provides the cyclical female fashion system with an endless supply of “regular novelty” (Barthes 2006, 68). Yet, despite the wealth of inspiration and technique across both male and female clothing, the bias has largely been against menswear, with limited reciprocal benefit. Therefore while womenswear has been continually re-invigorated through a process which appropriates traditional male attire, men’s fashion of the modern period has rarely drawn on the techniques and silhouettes of women’s fashion. Two interconnected ideas underpin this imbalance. First is the prevailing notion that menswear is a self-referencing system, with an evolutionary path based within its own culture and traditions rather than on a seasonal renewal of fashionable attire. Secondly, traditional male clothing culture promotes innovation within its systems of manufacture and the fabric and construction technologies these systems produce. Therefore, while “fashion is a phenomenon both of innovation and conformity” (Barthes 2006, 86), the ways in which innovation and conformity are played out across gendered modes of design and production could be explained thus: On the one hand traditional male clothing promotes innovation through its modes of manufacture leading to conformity in design. On the other hand womenswear fashion culture promotes innovation to conform creatively – the cyclical fashion system. - 11 - The research question Taking this dichotomy as a starting point, this research project applies techniques traditionally associated with the production of female fashion to the production of contemporary menswear as a means of examining the connections between issues of design, gender and technique. A number of key questions underpin the research process: How can innovation occur as a result of this mis-matching of technique and genre? How can an alternative vision of contemporary menswear be achieved through the practical application of womenswear patternmaking and construction technique? How can this be achieved within the boundaries/possibilities the menswear genre presents? How can a more ambiguous representation of gender be presented through clothing? This project aims to make work which can provide a new way of thinking about how garments relate to the male body (for example how the three dimensional qualities inherent in womenswear technique work in relation to the planar qualities of traditional menswear) and how these techniques in turn could be utilised to challenge strict binary gender codes perpetuated by menswear and womenswear traditions. The production of male garment designs, patterns and prototypes will determine answers to these questions and provide a visual record and reference library of the researched practice. The project is practice-led, meaning that I explore my key research questions through a studio-based paradigm which firmly situates creative practice as both a vehicle of enquiry, and, a research output in its own right (Gray & Malins 2004). Consequently, the examinable outcomes of the project are a collection of garments, patterns and drawings presented at The Block, Creative Industries Precinct June 4th & 5th 2008, and, an exegesis of 9,000 words (weighted 70% & 30% respectively). Part One outlines my interpretative paradigm and my methodology.