Tits out for the lads!

This piece was originally written in February 2022.

An exhibitionist trend involving the flaunting of the torso has been flashing up on recent menswear runways, with roots in LGBTQ+ nightlife.

Baring gym-honed chests isn’t a new phenomenon – showcased in the previous decade by JLS and Simon Cowell. But this isn’t about scoop necks and stringer tank tops to show off “gains” or a virile lawn of chest hair. Think less gym rat sweating it out on the weights, more queer art student sweating it out at the rave. And although this is a trend on menswear runways, those who wear it could be of any gender identity.

 

Pecs, chests and nipples had a strong season at the spring 2022 menswear shows, (Luis De Javier, Rick Owens, Balmain, Arturo Obegero) but this exhibitionist spirit carried through to fall 2022 despite dropping temperatures. Loewe S/S22 showed a look with Regina George-style breast cut-outs, while their most recent season brought a heart-shaped, peek-a-boo nipple. Fendi A/W22 featured chest cut-outs reminiscent of cult anime, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. An early player, Palomo Spain’s A/W21 show presented scoop necks so low they almost reached the navel. Whereas GmbH A/W21 left more to the imagination, with necklines framing the decolletage in a traditionally “female” silhouette. (According to Scott Ormston of @fashioncandrag, popular Instagram account with followers including drag queen Violet Chachki and DJ Jodie Harsh, this feels especially new as “menswear is rarely designed to think about the curves of a body or to emphasise and flatter certain areas in the way womenswear does.”)

“There’s a lot of interest in redefining menswear and the masc/male look right now.”

Balmain S/S22

Loewe A/W22

Masculinity has been revised before, but this particular wave began in the late 2010s.  The resurgence of nail-painting; Alessandro Michele’s pussy bows and long-haired muses; “soft boy” pastels and – recently – musicians Lil Nas X, Troye Sivan, Harry Styles and Kid Cudi donning dresses. There’s a feeling of men having more fun with fashion, a slow erosion of “toxic masculinity” and a focus on the queer gaze. Culminating in the “hot boy summer” of crop tops, halters and – of course – exposed chests. “Think of it as an objectification of the masc form,” said José Criales-Unzueta, Instagram fashion commentator and writer for Business of Fashion, i-D and Paper. “There’s a lot of interest in redefining the masc/male look right now. It’s telling that this comes primarily from queer designers.”

Black-owned, NY-based brand, Kingsley

 

“This aesthetic has come from queer rave culture,” said Ormston. Certainly, a look at photos from London’s LGBTQ+ nightlife events – Inferno, Riposte, Guttering – presents harnesses, mini bras, extreme crops and low necklines. Remembering the harness-over-suit trend on red carpets of recent years, it’s no surprise that fashion is leaning more into this aesthetic. “Except now, these young queer-owned designer brands like Luis De Javier, Kingsley, Phlemuns, Ludovic de Saint Sernin and Dion Lee have shown there’s real purchasing power behind these more ‘feminine’ looks, which is why brands like Fendi feel comfortable leaning into it.” Bailey Slater, editor-in-chief of FAG MAG, weighs in: “I can’t say everyone you meet at the pub will come sauntering up to the bar with his nipples out, but it’s definitely something that’s been happening in LGBTQ+ nightlife spaces and art schools since the beginning of time.”

“The reality is that people are very horny. It sounds funny but it’s true.”

Partygoer at Riposte event in London

This rise in sexy menswear is also part of a general feeling of exhibitionism. Body-baring is back in womenswear too. Whether Blumarine’s Y2K-influenced low waists and Miu Miu’s barely-there miniskirts, or the abundance of skimpiness and cut-outs from Mugler and smaller brands like Poster Girl or Nensi Dojaka. Why now? It’s a combination of things, says Criales-Unzueta: “post-lockdown desire for freedom and liberation, and also the Internet being a space where folks are more comfortable showing themselves (literally and figuratively).” Also, “the reality is that people are very horny. It sounds funny but it’s true,” he continues, explaining that the pandemic has changed our exchanges with people, including sexuality. “Plus, thirst-trap culture has made people more comfortable with sex again, Gen Z is becoming sex positive in a way that includes genderfluidity, so this all ties together and manifests in both menswear and womenswear.”

 

Although the trend isn’t necessarily for one body type, it’s mostly seen on thin or muscular bodies. With big-name womenswear runways like Versace and Fendi finally incorporating plus size models, Ormston raised the point that “menswear is really behind womenswear” on the body diversity front. And does this trend translate to real life? That’s tricky, since “a lot of the inspiration for fashion today comes from online style” due to the pandemic, and not everyone dresses the same way online as they do offline, says Criales-Unzueta. That being said, he cites the recent Euphoria high Tik Tok trend as evidence that there really are young people who dress like this IRL: “The trend may be a joke, but those people actually have these clothes already, don’t they?” 

Euphoria High Tik Tok trend

 

“Fashion loves to fixate on youth culture, so it makes sense for menswear to look more flamboyant and intentionally queer,” concludes Criales-Unzueta. It reflects the more open and fluid attitude of younger generations towards gender expression. Certainly, we’ve come a long way, “considering in the 2000s men who might have exfoliated the dead skin off their face would have to adopt the label “metrosexual”. Like what the fuck was that about?” says Slater. So, there you have it: a tale of gender liberation, new masculinity, sex positivity and… horniness.