Dandyism or the dandy.
A British cultural movement dating back to the end of the 19th century based upon a true belief in elegance and refinement. And also upon a certain awareness of being culturally superior. Life was considered as a work of Art where everything was like a performance, as we would call it today.
The great, unforgettable dandies:Lord Brummel and Oscar Wilde. In Italy D’Annunzio represented dandyism although with a very provocative attitude towards the masses. According to Charles Baudelaire, “The dandy should aspire to be uninterruptedly sublime. He should live and sleep in front of a mirror”.
Ralph Lauren treated the theme of dandyism in an elegant and sophisticated way, especially with the tuxedos which looked like figures from the Victorian era or from a film like “Brideshead Revisited” starring Jeremy Irons as a flawless dandy, or from certain films by Peter Greenaway, surely the director who represents dandyism at its best.
It’s almost like a philosophy, and Ralph Lauren have always followed it: his women dressed in men’s clothes, looking as flawless as a dandy from the end of the 19th century, always look a little magical, and make you dream of a forgotten elegance. What a pity.
So many fashionable clothes sometimes fail to intrigue.
We need fairytales, we need to envisage ourselves in a more beautiful world, less vulgar and cheap. And someone like Marc Jacobs who makes us dream with his Alice in Wonderland is always admired and coveted. Yes, it’s the desire to look unique and sophisticated.
For hardcore fashionistas this may sound as a dull consideration. Yet it’s better to go down in history because of true elegance and refinement than for a few ridiculous ensembles.
It’s always a matter of choice. And looking back sometimes is not a bad idea. It makes you think that sometimes evolution equals to involution.
Yet I believe that it is legitimate and necessary to move on and experiment. And to create new opportunities and new paths without being seized by the nostalgia for a long gone world. But dreaming, if only for a minute, as if we were watching a movie, is good for you. And reassuring.
Franca Sozzani
Published: 2.17.12