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What a man!
Celluloid Style matches movies and American men's
clothing designers
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| American actor Richard Gere as he
arrives at the Lido in Venice, Italy. |
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Growing up, fashion designer John Bartlett wanted to be the
sexy guy in the film American Gigolo.
Bartlett was hooked when Richard Gere's character in the 1980 film lays
out all his Giorgio Armani clothes on a bed. "He had great clothes, a
great apartment, great decor, a great car. It was my fantasy. Even though
the guy was a gigolo, it seemed glamorous to me," Bartlett says.
But living in Cincinnati, the fashions of Milan, or even New York, were
not readily available. "T.J. Maxx was the best substitute I could find.
I bought a burlap unconstructed jacket and rolled the sleeves," Bartlett
recalls.
Still, the movie had, and continues to have,
an influence on his style.
"It (American Gigolo) came out as I was developing
my sense of style. I was 16 in a Camaro and listening to the soundtrack,"
he says.
So when Esquire magazine asked Bartlett to participate in a lecture
and film series on Celluloid Style, the designer immediately knew which
movie he'd discuss. American Gigolo was, after all, the first movie
Bartlett had seen that featured a man as a style icon.
The series, which was done as a fundraiser for the Fashion Institute
of Technology, also featured Tommy Hilfiger and The Graduate, Michael
Kors and Downhill Racer, Issac Mizrahi and The Great Gatsby, and Andy
Spade and The Royal Tenenbaums. The designers each chose the movie that
served as their greatest inspiration.
"Everyone knows the relationship between Hollywood, fashion and women.
What's not said is how important film is to men, who are more difficult
for the fashion world to reach," says Stefano Tonchi, Esquire's fashion
creative director.
When ordinary Joes see George Clooney or Brad Pitt in a great outfit,
they feel they can wear the look, too, Tonchi adds, because most men
relate better to actors than models.
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