The tank top, the story of a clothing revolution - Marie Claire
Long considered a popular and then sexist garment, the tank top now has a queer and feminist image. Many brands are making it a symbol of the new sexual revolution, where bodies are revealed, proudly and boldly blending feminine and masculine elements.
Few garments evoke so many fantasies. The tank top is one of them. Invented in the 19th century by Marcel Eisenberg, owner of the Marcel hosiery factory in Roanne, this undershirt was initially worn by laborers and farmers, as it was particularly well-suited to physical work. "Originally, it was a men's undergarment not meant to be seen. It's a garment that keeps you warm and is easy to wash," explains Sophie Lemahieu, a fashion historian.
"The tank top is a heterosexual staple that carries a lot of stereotypes." - Virgil Lamette and Arthur Ballorin
It is often glimpsed beneath a shirt, a caricature of the Frenchman with his beret firmly in place. But the tank top will gradually shed this initial function to become a permanent fixture in our wardrobes.
"In the 1950s, the tank top became scandalous precisely because it wasn't meant to be worn in public," adds Sophie Lemahieu. This marked a turning point, the point at which the tank top transitioned from underwear to a garment, just like a t-shirt. It even became sexy thanks to actors who sported it in numerous films, such as Marlon Brando in A Streetcar Named Desire .
The story of the tank top doesn't end there; in the 80s this garment became the ultimate macho and virile attribute.
"It conveys the cliché of ultra-strong masculinity, it is used to show muscular arms. We all have the image of Sylvester Stallone in Rambo in our heads," continues Sophie Lemahieu.
Or that of the sidekicks Archie Andrews and Jughead Jones in the American series Riverdale .
The tank top, a symbol of a sexual revolution
It is only more recently that the tank top has infiltrated the women's and LGBTQI+ locker room.
"There is a reappropriation of the body today and the tank top serves to convey a message. It participates in a certain sexual liberation claimed by the queer community, which takes over a macho attribute. It is one of the only garments that allows men to reveal so much of their body. It is a rather ordinary garment which nevertheless becomes a strong symbol of counter-culture," explains Sophie Lemahieu.
This view is shared by the co-founders of the activist collective Ballorin. "For us, clothing should highlight the body. We have a real activist desire to offer LGBTQI+ people bold clothing to express their creativity. And the tank top was a natural choice," explain co-founders Virgil Lamette and Arthur Ballorin.
They continue: "The tank top is a basic heterosexual garment that carries many clichés, particularly of macho men found in Hollywood popular culture. For the queer community, it is as interesting as it is repulsive; there is an ambivalence to this garment that both seduces and insecure us. Because there is a lot of pressure surrounding the bodies of homosexual men."
"With the tank top, men are more willing to reveal their bodies, with pride." - Virgil Lamette and Arthur Ballorin.
For the past few years, many brands have been embracing this basic garment, transforming it, reworking it, and giving it a much stronger, more assertive, and sexual image. The Ballorin collective has partnered with the French brand Les Tricots de Marcel , a true institution in the production of this iconic garment.
While Ballorin designed a unique logo to represent this collaboration, the cut itself remained traditional. "We wanted to keep the iconic tank top, and it's one of the most successful pieces in our collection," the co-founders explained. This proves that the garment has become a wardrobe essential. "With the tank top, men are more comfortable revealing their bodies, with pride; it symbolizes this new sexual revolution within the queer community. It allows for cuts that would never have been seen before in menswear. It's a new kind of commitment," Virgil Lamette and Arthur Ballorin explained.
Gender-neutral clothing
Meanwhile, Kingsley Gbadegesin, a young Brooklyn-based designer, is also reimagining the tank top. He defines himself as "a designer working to advance the liberation of the Black community, the queer community, and people of color."
Through his label K.ngsley , he offers tank tops with reworked necklines, asymmetrical straps, and sexy cuts.
"I wear a lot of tank tops and I usually buy them in the women's section," Kingsley Gbadegesin explains in Vogue US .
"In the 1960s, the tank top was feminist. Women wore it without a bra, like Jane Birkin." - Sophie Lemahieu
"Femininity knows no boundaries. Even if I may look like a cis black man, believe me, the moment I open my mouth, you think: 'Oh, she's one of us,'" he jokes.
On the other side of the Atlantic, the French brand Omear also offers a gender-neutral tank top. "Masculine and feminine codes no longer really have a place in fashion today. There is a desire to break free from dictates," says Kim Nigay, the brand's founder.
Is the tank top a feminist garment?
Popular with women, men, and non-binary people alike, the tank top is now liberating bodies. Except perhaps for women, who are still too often victims of body shaming .
"In the 1960s, the tank top was feminist. Women wore it without a bra, like Jane Birkin," recalls Sophie Lemahieu. Unfortunately, today, some women are insulted for "daring" to show their nipples under their tank tops.
Léna Mahfouf experienced this firsthand on her Instagram account. "Faced with a story where she was wearing a simple tank top, without a bra, some internet users took it upon themselves to make inappropriate remarks to her, harassing her for simply showing her nipples," recalls the media outlet Madmoizelle .
To which the young woman replied: "I think it's important to remind the young girls and boys who follow me: you are free to wear whatever you want."
Source: marieclaire.fr - By Published on https://www.marieclaire.fr/histoire-marcel