This week I have been observing men in the media. In my voyeurism, I have noticed that these guys are not as arbitrarily thrown together as they would have us believe . Style is how they speak to the world about who they are. Each man has their own ethos no matter how subtle. These are the ones that resonate with me most.
Flat caps, sheepskin, retro sportswear, earthy, autumnal, 70s shades. Trade marks of modern, conscious hip hop artist such as Common, Mos Def, Maxwell (circa 1996) and Bilal. However before the 90s neo soul movement. Before record labels handed RnB a guitar and a dashiki. Before tie-dye went loco, there was one misunderstood unknown by the name of Romeo Blue aka Mr Lenny Kravitz. Inspired by the likes of Hendrix and Lennon, he would dress like his musical influences. Few understood his vintage leather jackets and bell bottoms, especially in the 1980s. Yet, as Kravitz continued to do his own thing both musically and aesthetically, he gradually became one of the coolest men in pop rock. He has since swopped the dreads for a fro, eventually cutting it low. But the original elements remain the same.
Ryan Gosling gets a category all by himself. I have no idea how he dresses off screen, but he has to be one of the best styled men on set. That is to say his characters have great wardrobes. The iconic jacket in Drive. The biker jacket he wore in Blue Valentine. Straddling both the indie and commercial market, Gossers, you've come a long way from The Notebook.
"Boys will be boys."
Retrospective innovators
The buyers for Primark can be both satirical and on point. Most recently it was a De La Soul 3 Feet High and Rising t-shirt. A welcome break from the hackneyed Guevara, Hendrix or Scarface tees.
Some men have a natural ability to look past the cliches. Enter Pharell Williams and Lupe Fiasco. These guys possess both a love for old school hip hop and a flare for the avant-garde. They'd gladly wear a pair of Converse All Stars with a NASA space suit. They play with iconic pieces to create an altogether new semantic.
The classic
Think Robert Redford's post-preppy college, post-military Hubble in The Way We Were. George Peppard in Breakfast at Tiffany's. Steve McQueen in Bullit. Paul Newman in Torn Curtain. These were the pioneers.
I loved this post. I feel my head is about to explode though as you've flagged up a load of men I adore or fancy all on one page!
ReplyDeleteRobert Redford in The Way We Were still holds the title for me as Most Handsome Man To Grace a Screen on Celluloid
Lenny Kravitz makes me womb twitch
Javier Bardem - can look from the sublime & sweet ( Eat, Pray, Love ) to the ridiculous and utterly terrifying ( No Country For Old Men)
Ryan Gosling - great, versatile, very charismatic actor
I'm going to stop there. I need to lie down... x x
Cheers Yasmin. I know what you mean. I was trying to picture stylish men but dashing kept coming to mind lol Yes Redford is breath-taking. Him and the late paul newman are my old school favourites. I see you have exquisite taste in both men and vamppire literature.
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