The dressed and styled human body is irresistible to analyse. Framed by the idea that people’s dress and engagement with Fashion is a fundamental component of how we all conceive, create and convey personal and shared histories, the following ‘mini-essays’ are my attempt to unpick the cultural threads that hold our wardrobes together. Aide-mémoires, tongue-in-cheek, discursive, works-in-progress, I began writing them in 2013 in the spirit of Roland Barthes’ Mythologies and Umberto Eco’s Travels in Hyper Reality, although rarely with the same perspicacity, precision and pace.
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36. The Horse
If dog is man’s best friend, the horse is surely his life partner. So close is the connection between humans and horses that the changing role and representation of the horse from the Middle Ages into modernity reveals much about the development of our society and culture. The story is not necessarily a happy one,…
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35. The Nineties
This article was first published with Parisian Gentleman. A few weeks ago, I attended a panel discussion chaired by the fashion critic Colin McDowell. In contrast to his interviewees, who took advantage of their momentary media appearance by wearing a medley of tight-fitting glitzy garments, McDowell’s clothes were conspicuous for being unremarkable. Sporting a jacket…
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34. The Pope
When asked about the origin of the Pontiff’s red slippers, the Vatican replied that Benedict XVI was clothed by Christ.[i] This risible retort seemed to lay bare an age-old tension between High Church and High Fashion. Throughout history, ostentatious expression through dress has been inveighed as an indicator of moral and spiritual fragility. Herodotus, who…
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33. The (Covered) Head
A 1960 Parisian Epiphany party was the scene of momentary embarrassment for the Duke of Windsor. The only monarch to voluntarily abdicate the English throne, the Duke looked pained as the moment of coronation approached for two of the bon ton revellers. Apparently oblivious to her husband’s anxiety, Duchess Wallis Simpson was acutely aware of…
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32. The Belt
I’ve never liked belts. They disrupt the clothed silhouette by gathering and puckering fabric. They form an unsightly bulge beneath jumpers and look awkward peeking below a waistcoat, along with the tie end, untucked shirt and tummy. The resulting effect is to make the garments that cover a man’s torso and legs appear as if…
Dr Benjamin Wild 