The Venice Factor in Men’s Fashion

Until the Renaissance (14th—17th centuries), clothing had changed relatively little for both men and women on the Italian peninsula.

Hence, menswear throughout the High Middle Ages (11th—13th centuries) consisted of 2-3 overlapping tunics, which laid the foundation for modern clothing and regional styles.

Remember, tunics were worn from the fall of the Roman Empire onward as a type of knee- or ankle-length shirt with some sort of hose-like pants.

By the time of the medieval period, the court dictated clothing. Take Venice, for example, where the nobility enforced a strict code of fashion laws, which dictated what was acceptable for any give class of society, whether military, worker, or aristocrat.

One thousand years ago, in the 11th century, men’s fashion finally parted ways with women’s attire, which, formerly had been quite similar.

Once menswear began taking its own course, it could be summed up in one word—extravagant. The men’s silhouette was robust, with wide shoulders.

On runways around the world today, elements of medieval fashion have been rearing their head; however, most items have been influenced from military dress.

It would be interesting to see other influences from this period pervade our times.

See some Medieval styles here.

Photos Public Domain.

Veneto...Not Just Venice

Today I spent most of the day in the Veneto region of Italy, making contacts for the upcoming concerts that I am organizing in conjunction with Varna International.

Veneto is mostly known for grandiose city of Venice, but other renowned cities lie within the region, such as Verona, Padua, and Vicenza.

Located in northeast Italy, the Veneto region was first inhabited by the Eugenei between the 2nd and 1st millennium BC and was later occupied by the Veneti in the 13th century BC.

In the Middle Ages, Venice rose to a major maritime power, trading with Byzantium and the Muslim world as it dominated the Mediterranean for a thousand years.

Throughout history, this region has enjoyed a significant role in the development of menswear and men’s fashion.

Today, numerous fashionable labels lie within its region.

As you can see, I enjoy driving throughout this industrialized region, stopping at the local pits stops on the highways called Autogrill and eating in various out-of-the-way restaurants in the country side.

Have a peek at a few more shots here.

Photos Copyright Men’s Fashion by Francesco.

SS10 at Amsterdam International Fashion Week

Unquestionably, there exists only one Venice in this world: the Queen of the Adriatic, the City of Bridges, la Serenissima—the most Serene.

But all around the globe, enchanting cities of water can be found like Bruges in Flemish Belgium—the “Venice of the North”—and Zhouzhuang of China, otherwise known as the “Venice of the East.”

Undoubtedly no one can forget Amsterdam, also nicknamed the “Venice of the North,” which started as a fishing village in the 12th century and has flowed into a city with 90 islands, 100 kilometers of canals, 1500 bridges, and 1 million inhabitants. "

I lived in the Netherlands for exactly one year when I was training to coordinate the European network for a multinational corporation. I used to love travelling to the “Venice of the North” just to walk along the canals.

Home to prominent menswear labels like G-Star, Amsterdam has been rising to international notoriety for its own citywide fashion week.

Kicked off in 2004, the Amsterdam International Fashion Week takes place in the Westergasfabriek, a gas factory built in 1883 that was closed in the Sixties upon the discovery of natural gas and, since, has been converted into a cultural park.

In conjunction with the event and collaborating with local museums, galleries and shops, Fashion Week Downtown organizes a series of parties, lectures, public catwalks, and expositions for the public.

From July 22-26 this year, several menswear labels exhibited at the Amsterdam International Fashion Week, including Replay, Ontfront, Cold Method, Hyun Yeu, and NōN by KIM.

Stay tuned for more coverage on these labels.

Photo top left Copyright by Massimo Catarinella at Wikipedia.
Photo bottom right 2010 s/s collection Copyright Peter Stigter.