Raf Simons for Jil Sander Man’s suit, polyester, cotton, nylon, spandex, spring 2011 MFIT, museum purchase
I think the designer’s intention of making the man’s suit in pink color is that he wanted to reverse the “pink stereotype” of being a young female color. In the late 1920s, it’s controversy about whether pink is for girls or boys, the final result is obvious in nowadays social context that pink is for girls and blue is for boys. This kind of either-or concept added to the color makes it has a lot of limitations in self-expression, especially in the fashion field. An important notion of this exhibition is to discuss how the color of pink could be interpreted in fashion in terms of gender. The color of pink tightly relates to the young female in the fashion field in modern times, it’s challenging for designers to break the stereotype and willing to take the risk of losing customers to use pink color in male garments. The curators included this garment in the exhibition is because of that comparing with other 1960s pink garments that reinforced the stereotype of pink-for-girl in the exhibition, this Raf Simons man suit challenges the stereotype and shows how the fashion field moves forward from the either-or concept to the both-and concept. The caption of this garment in the museum says: “Raf Simons’ work for Jil Sander included important pink designs for both men and women.” I think my interpretation aligns with the designer’s intention because he wanted to experiment with a color that people often relates it to a certain gender by applying it in the opposite gender’s dress practice.
