In the world of fashion, the race to be creatively out-of-the-box has resulted in products with variety in designs, variations in style, and in a latest trend, elements with no boundaries. While Gucci’s latest ’70s style distressed GG canvas sneakers are out there creating buzz, French luxury brand Yves Saint Laurent’s (YSL) new line of penis shaped earring and matching necklace has given a spin to bizarre fashion.
Made in Italy, YSL’s earrings priced US$280 are made of patinated golden brass and have ‘Saint Laurent Paris’ engraved on the back, the golden pendant is priced at US$795. While much of it can be attributed to the creative perspective with buyers ready to swipe it off, fashion jewellery designers believe such pieces are mainly worn to make a statement.
“At the end of the day, there will only be handful of people wanting to make a statement by wearing bizarre jewellery pieces. But by and large, you won’t find people paying for such purchases and wearing these in social circles. If it was once a kind of thing, maybe people will opt for this,” says Bansari Mehta, founder of Bansri, a fashion jewellery design label.
Eshaa Amiin
As absurd as the idea of wearing a phallic-shaped jewellery may appear to be, it is, however, not the first time a penis was creatively used in accessories. In 2014, American fashion designer Tom Ford came out with a crossed shaped penis necklace that not only created a buzz around the world, but also offended many at the same time. Prior to that, singer Kesha had released a penis necklace as part of her fashion line.
Jewellery designer Sakshi Jhunjhunwala explains that everyone is looking to be remembered, and hence looking for an experiment. “I created hookah earrings, which personally I won’t wear. But I just made it to create a buzz about myself. But when it comes to the wearability point of view, it is not a thing. But it did make me famous, people know it is my design, and it later got copied in the market too,” she shares.
“If you talk about it worldwide, there is a certain section of people who would wear it. These are the personalities who want to make a mark and be provocative,” adds Bansari.
However, stylist Eshaa Amiin is of the opinion that such bizarre fashion will become a fad soon and is there garner unnecessary attention. “I don’t think I would use it. I feel it is just a little too unnecessary in terms of design aesthetics to be doing a thing of that sort. It is just about being different to create something which is unseen and make a noise about it,” she says. She further adds that if such a design was minute and delicate which could be merged in a chain or a stack of bracelets, it can be accepted by a larger set of buyers and hence be a long surviving fashion trend.
YSL’s Penis pendant and dangle earrings —YSL
However, designer Bansari begs to differ. According to her, for a brand like YSL that has done a lot of work on the face of earth, it is the loyalty to the brand that makes its products a style statement.
“They have created a big following as a brand through their designs. And if that kind of evolving brand puts up something like this, it automatically becomes a power statement. Then people buy into everything that comes from them. So even if they were to put up breasts and nipples in jewellery pieces, I think people will not shy away. There is a certain section of loyal buyers who will grab them,” she says.
Stylist Astha Sharma echoes the views, adding that bizarre fashion pieces can’t be a commercial entity as the idea behind such pieces is to keep it exclusive. “You will not see them on shops or it will not churn down to street fashion, neither will you see high street fashion adapting it because it is not everyone’s cup of tea,” she says.
Moreover, she views such fashion pieces as a product of pure creative geniuses and subjects such jewellery pieces to taste. “Such statement pieces are a reflection of the designer’s thought process and inspiration. Similarly, it depends person-to-person, whether they would like to wear something like this to create a statement. Fashion and runway is art, and every designer is trying to put forward their design in the way they understand art. It is not for me to like or dislike it. It’s a form of creativity that we see every day,” she concludes.
