Men’s fashion, probably the most interesting aspect of fashion today, due to the continual breakdown of traditional norms in menswear, as men themselves break free from the constraints of conformity and revel in a new found sartorial freedom of expression. Fashion is ever changing and nowhere is this more seen now than in the menswear styles of today, a side of the industry that until recent years saw very slow growth and change.
This shift has taken form in various trends, both in fashion and societal shifts and one of the most impressive is the current lean toward gender blurring; a merging of the menswear and womenswear particularly evident in the rise of the male ‘skirt’. A look first popularised by Jean Paul Gaultier, it is one now seen on many a runway, from Givenchy to Marc Jacobs, and style choice that is particularly popular with adherents of the Parisian neo-gothic cult.
DressAddict by Artem & Victor is a Kiev label who not only showcase this new found freedom in menswear(they also produce womenswear) by focusing, as the name suggests, on monastic, androgynous clothing that borrows heavily from the traditional gender opposing wardrobe, but also testify to the current rise in Eastern Europe and Russia of high end avant garde and fashion forward designers who are creating some of the most exciting clothing on the market. DressAddict follow the principles of minimalism and form and function, focusing on the actual material, and how it works with the body, giving their collections a quality of simplicity that evokes a deep sense of spirituality. Simple, unique, stylish and androgynous, these clothes will appeal to the fans of Rik Owens and his ilk; fluid and unisex garments balanced with structured jackets and tailoring (yet losing no sense of masculinity) in a monochrome and military palette, they conjure an image of urban warriors clad elegantly in high-quality Italian textiles – jersey, wool, and other natural fabrics.