Manspreading as a measure of dominance? Saint Laurent lookbook explained.
Psychologically, when a person tries to take up more space, it’s often an attempt to assume a position of power and assert dominance. There’s even a term for it — manspreading: when a man (as it’s usually a man) sits with legs wide apart and takes up too much space on public transport.
The current Saint Laurent collection, according to SL creative director Anthony Vaccarello in Vogue Runway, “is about control, and power, in a way.” He deliberately stepped away from the overused “a tuxedo for a woman which was worn naked underneath” (overused, but still no-lose combination I must say). Instead, he offered his vision of something “more strict” — oversized tailoring styles with shirts and ties, very reminiscent of 1980s men’s fashion.
I often browse the brand’s official website — Saint Laurent remains one of my personal favorites in RTW. In the lookbook available there, the backstage photos show models in so-called power poses, with their legs spread wide. It may come off as bold, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that it teeters dangerously on the edge of vulgarity with “I don’t give a” attitude. The approach in its inheritance of masculinity feels so one-dimensional that it ends up feeling uncomfortable.
After all, real power is rarely physical — it doesn’t rely on the space you take up.
If you feel like something doesn’t click in the pics apart from the pose — I know what you mean. From the archetype perspective, the models look like they’re playing around in their father’s wardrobe. Part of that comes down to age — you aren’t born into the ruler archetype, you grow into it. These shots were taken backstage of a runway show, which partly explains the dissonance in the images. The ad campaign features Michelle Pfeiffer, and even though I haven’t analyzed her archetype, the campaign already looks more harmonious simply because she’s more mature (would be even better if there were something more rather then three same poses).
I’ve written about Saint Laurent positioning issues and missed opportunities in terms of archetypes here.
Aligning image, archetype, and tone is part of my consulting practice for brand communication. Details about such consultancy are here
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While the layout of the website still isn’t perfect, the good news is that some time after I wrote about the price display issue (here: https://lnkd.in/dfVh7hJz), it has now been updated — prices are shown on the collection page too, so you no longer have to click into each product page to see it.
One of the problems the website still has is that almost all the items are not featured on models. Saint Laurent lookbook with unretouched try-ons is here. This try-on lookbook format is part of the solutions we offer. It is relatable, emotionally resonant, and gives confidence to proceed with the purchase.
Communicating with the customer starts long before he steps in the boutique. I don't share all the insights here, but I help brands bridge that gap between online and offline through my e-commerce consultancy. Details are here.