According to Prada, ‘Ugly’ Skinny Jeans May Be Back
Ah, the never-ending fashion cycle. While Y2K and its wide-legged cargo pants may be the style du jour, they won’t last long, there is always a new look ready and waiting to take the top spot. It would seem Miuccia Prada and Raf Simmons are putting their bets on the skinny jean for Spring 2023.
Their showing in Milan yesterday has raised a fruitful conversation online about Prada’s intrinsic link to ‘ugly’. For years Prada has been linked to ‘ugly chic’, items of clothing that, at first, make one wince or think “I wouldn’t be seen dead in that”, but then after you look closer and take in the entire beauty of a piece you think, “No, I was wrong.” While for many brands being labelled ugly is an insult, to Miuccia this simply isn’t the case, in fact, it's an identity, having stated that “Ugly is attractive, ugly is exciting” in an interview.
Image: Filippo Fior
This is a collection about life, and the marks that living can leave on us physically. How does the way we go about our day impact the clothes we wear? “There is a sense of the life of women,” Miuccia said, “Life and humanity crafts the clothes—not superficial embellishment, but traces of living, leaving marks. This idea of clothes shaped by humanity excites us.” At first, the sight of tight skinny trousers on the runway made a throng of people look away in disgust, not wanting to relive the early 2010s once more. But then, you notice the carefully pre-wrinkled bags, blazers and skirts, a meticulous commentary on working culture.
Image: Armando Grillo
Online, and in person, we beat ourselves up whilst trying to present a version of ourselves that isn’t true. No, you didn’t just wake up with your full face of natural-looking makeup, voluminous blowout and superbly ironed and tailored dress suit on. And, moreover, we rarely actually stay looking that put together for long, the hardships of the working day take their toll and the makeup creases, the hairstyle deflates and the suit wrinkles.
Raf Simons said of this new collection, “more than any other collection, this one is filled with different views… different bodies of work, within a single body of work—shifting between disparate form languages.” So while you may at first despise the idea of a skinny jean or trouser, this collection has far more to offer than first meets the eye.
