In his books, Alan Flusser is one of the proponents of harmony in mens' dress (harmony being the philosophy that individual items should not stand out from the rest of the day's clothing). An apparent contradiction to the theory of harmony comes each summer, when the American prep style of dressing adds brightly colored and often patterned trousers and shorts to the mix. Or does it?
I have written before about the art of blending pieces together so that the ensemble becomes more than the sum of its parts. And, in the photo, Flusser uses three bright elements - red trousers, spotlessly white shirt and madras jacket - to balance each other so that none of them stands out.
Cacophany? I think not.
Photo: Rose Callahan for Gilt
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8 comments:
I rather like the (presumably accidental?) neologism of "cacophany".
The unconscious portmanteauing of "cacophony" with "epiphany" seems an appropriately good word for the great insight that sometimes using bold items together works well to create a synergistic whole.
When done well, this is far more interesting than the more usual practice of trying to "tone down" a strong piece with subdued everything else.
Of course, the risk of failure is higher, but that's part of the fun of dressing, isn't it! :)
'The unconscious portmanteauing of "cacophony" with "epiphany"...'
Given Flusser's standing as a writer on men's style, it's possible Will was thinking of "theophany."
Or that he went to the Alan Flusser School of Syntax!
He likes alternate spellings too. On the merits, I think I do not have what it takes to employ this approach discussed here, and in the post with Luca R. Advanced class.
sorry but toning down is my bag.whatever "phany" you care to use that clash of colours reminiscent of a kandisky painting does not wash with me.the gentleman has got chuzpah and has set the agenda,in his opinion,as to what is style.we can either take it or leave it.i have left it.i would rather go for a more subtle approach,it leaves a more endearing impression,like a good scent.
he looks not very good to be honest, the opposite of what hes pontificating, the jacket is not there and red trousers are over, they also dont work
I admire people who can pull this look off without it seeming forced or "look at me! look at me!"
I find it interesting that Flusser, the master of pattern mixing, is wearing only one main pattern (the pocket square features another).
It seems that the key when combining so-called GTH elements is to limit the patterns to one (plus an optional one in the pocket square).
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