Fashion in Film: Giorgio Armani as the Pioneer of Power Dressing
It comes without a doubt that Giorgio Armani is one of the world’s most successful and significant designers in the fashion industry. Dubbed the “King of the power suit”, his clean-cut, shoulder-padded suits have draped the bodies of the rich and famous, gracing movie scenes and red carpets alike. After the release of American Gigolo in 1980, for which Armani designed costumes for the lead role, played by Richard Gere, he gained worldwide recognition for his suits, introducing America to Made in Italy.
Born in Piacenza, Italy in 1934, Giorgio Armani gained his notorious name designing menswear for Cerruti 1881 whilst simultaneously freelancing for a number of fashion houses including Allegri, Bagutta, Hilton and more. He established his own namesake label in 1975, which began as a signature menswear line and expanded into a luxury fashion empire, introducing both men and womenswear collections, eventually diversifying into music, sport and luxury hotels and restaurants too.
Giorgio Armani by Andy Warhol in 1981
Armani’s popularity skyrocketed in America in the 1980s when his men’s ‘power suits’ appeared predominantly in Paul Schrader’s American Gigolo. Since then, his designs, comprised of deconstructed jackets, pleated trousers, shirts and ties, have been the symbol of the “Made in Italy” aesthetic.
The narrative of the film is one that can be easily forgotten: a crime neo-noir, wherein protagonist Julian Kay, played by Richard Gere, is a high-priced escort who lives a lavish yet emotionally unattached lifestyle, until becoming romantically involved with a politician’s wife. Concurrently, he finds himself the primary suspect of a murder which he did not commit. However, more of the film’s focus is on Kay’s signature style than it is the actual plot. Armani’s suits represented a new era of menswear; they were relaxed yet elegant and polished, complementing Gere’s nonchalant character, who is also shown to take pleasure in dressing himself.
Take the opening scene of the film for example, where Gere’s character is shown stepping out of his black Mercedes 450SL convertible whilst Call Me by Blondie sets the soundtrack, and into a store for a tailored fitting to try on new suits, in an interior of red walls, a signifier of power, confidence and a little bit of danger. Later in the film, he appears shirtless in his luxurious Los Angeles apartment, pulling out a number of blazers, shirts and ties from his wardrobe and laying them on the bed, matching them carefully to curate his own look. A ritual he performs in order to start his day, both Armani and the persona of Julian Kay trigger one question: do the clothes make the man or does the man make the clothes?
Richard Gere portrays the role of Julian Kay in American Gigolo (1980)
Fashion plays a crucial role in film, enabling insight to characters and narrative and acting as a component of the film’s story. Richard Gere’s wardrobe in American Gigolo contributed to extending the notoriety of the designer beyond just Italy. The legacy that the film holds owing to Armani’s suit designs gave recognition to the designer but also importance to the role of fashion in film. For Armani, cinema has always represented an undergrowth of suggestions from which to draw inspiration and reinvigorate his creative spirit. The memorable partnership he made with the film, American Gigolo, brings Made in Italy to glittering Hollywood, making Armani's garments an unprecedented status-symbol.
