SexyBack on the Spring 16 Runway

“Sexy” is a state of mind. It’s objective. How many billboards and ads have used the same mad-lib, “I feel sexiest when I _______.”  That blank is open for positive interpretation: when I work out, when when I learn something new, when I get a promotion. It very well could have been the fodder Drake needed for his famous lyrics, “Sweatpants, hair tied, chilling with no makeup on” (that’s when we’re the prettiest and no, we don’t take it wrong).

Of course, sometimes sexy is a lot more obvious. Blatant. Overt and unapologetic in the first three letters of that word. It’s skin and shape and lust and power, laid out on the table (bed?) as opposed to implied.

Best case scenario: you feel comfortable on either side. But if you’ve long-immersed yourself in the world of fashion — whether it be as a happy voyeur, a dedicated consumer or by way of your chosen career, there’s a chance that what’s considered sexy and what’s perceived as fashionable have long felt mutually exclusive.

We can ruminate on the “whys” forever: a post-Sex & the City world taught us that fashion should be avant-garde, or ugly on purpose; ironic or odd-shaped or confusing to the untrained eye. Like regular clothes to the untrained eye. No more Samantha Jones. It should repel straight men or act as a filter for “the good ones.” There’s a nipple loophole and abs had a moment, but overall, fashion should be kind of weird. It’s what separates civilians from the members of this elite club. Right?

Wrong. That word “elite” no longer flies when it comes to fashion. If it’s cool to be nice then you can’t exclude someone for not being weird (reverse high school hierarchy psychology here), and in this swirling world of trends-versus-no-trends-meets-personal-style-equals-anything-goes, what’s fashionable can no longer be relegated to a one-or-the-other box. The naked dress can still be cool. Carrie Bradshaw always knew this.

It’s in that equalized playing field that Justin Timberlake got his way. Sexy’s back. But he didn’t bring it to the runways — designers did. Big ones, like Joseph Altuzarra who has long celebrated the female form. New ones, like Dion Lee who loves a lady in red. Contemporary ones, like Amy Smilovic, who as of late leans toward the boxy and slouchy at Tibi but every once in a while hits the crowd with a slip dress. These designers are taking back what nightclub culture took: body-con, skin bearing dresses and slinky, hide-nothing sheaths that make no apologies in their seduction.

One could argue that sexy never really left, of course. Especially not if it’s a state of mind. But where’s the slideshow in that?

Images via Vogue Runway; Feature collage by Elizabeth Tamkin

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