The Genderless Revolution.
Fashion has always been a form of storytelling—a wordless, visual language that reveals who we are, where we come from, and sometimes, who we dream of becoming. At its core, fashion is deeply personal, but it is also inherently political. Nowhere is that more evident than in the growing rise of gender-neutral fashion, which challenges one of the oldest assumptions in style: that what we wear must be dictated by our gender. This movement is not about erasing gender, but about untethering clothing from binary constraints. It invites us to view fashion not as a set of rules, but as a canvas—a space where identity is fluid, personal, and ever-evolving.
In the early 20th century, women began to push against the restrictive codes of femininity, rebelling against corsets and voluminous skirts in favour of garments that prioritised movement and freedom. Coco Chanel’s relaxed silhouettes and trousers for women were radical in their time, signalling a shift towards autonomy and comfort. The 1920s “flapper” movement embraced cropped hair, loose-fitting dresses, and androgynous aesthetics, upending conventional ideas of femininity. These early steps laid the groundwork for a more inclusive future, where clothing would be less about conformity and more about choice.
The 1960s and ’70s brought a wave of cultural revolutions that spilled into wardrobes. The “unisex” moment emerged not just in theory, but in the everyday—jeans, T-shirts, and military jackets became common across genders. Musicians like David Bowie and Grace Jones played with androgyny, using stage costumes to blur lines and bend norms. Fashion icons of the era rejected labels, embracing eclectic looks that made room for both softness and strength. The power suit of the 1980s brought new dimensions, as women in the corporate world adopted tailored blazers and trousers, reshaping “professionalism” to reflect a changing social order. While not yet truly genderless, these decades set in motion a growing comfort with ambiguity, a subtle peeling away of the rigid binaries that once governed wardrobes.
PHOTO CREDIT: Saint Laurent
The early 2000s marked a turning point. Music subcultures—emo, punk, indie—began to normalise gender-blurring styles among youth. Skinny jeans, eyeliner, layered band tees, and thrifted pieces told a story of resistance against conformity. At the same time, the digital revolution cracked fashion wide open. Online platforms allowed for the rise of niche communities and personal expression untethered to the mainstream fashion industry’s narrow lens. Tumblr, YouTube, and early fashion blogs gave voice to people who found freedom in androgyny and fluidity in presentation. Suddenly, style inspiration wasn’t coming solely from luxury houses—it was coming from teens in Tokyo, artists in Berlin, and creators in Lagos, all shaping a new aesthetic frontier.
Now in the 2020s, gender-neutral fashion is not just a movement—it’s a redefinition of the fashion narrative. One of the most striking testaments to this evolution came during Saint Laurent’s Spring/Summer 2025 runway show. Reaffirming its iconic legacy, the house returned once again to its signature tailored silhouettes, but with a modern twist: they were entirely genderless. Sleek tuxedos, razor-sharp blazers, and fluid suiting glided down the runway on models of all genders, with styling that emphasised elegance over identity categories. It wasn’t about dressing like a man or a woman—it was about power, grace, and intention. In reimagining “Le Smoking” for a new generation, Saint Laurent proved that the future of fashion isn’t confined by history—it’s inspired by it. The collection served not only as a nod to Yves Saint Laurent’s revolutionary past, but also as a declaration of relevance in today’s shifting cultural climate, of course making it one of the hottest trends in womenswear (just take a look at fashion week streetstyle).
PHOTO CREDIT: Saint Laurent
As we look towards the future, gender-neutral fashion isn’t a passing aesthetic—it’s a paradigm shift. It reflects a world more willing to accept complexity, more interested in authenticity than conformity. The upcoming “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” exhibition at the Met will explore how Black fashion, often rooted in self-determination and resistance, intersects with this moment. It’s a reminder that fashion has always been about more than fabric—it’s about heritage, politics, emotion, and power. The move towards genderless fashion reflects a world more willing to accept complexity, more interested in authenticity than conformity.
PHOTO CREDIT: Tyler Mitchell
In the end, the rise of gender-neutral fashion is not about creating a new norm—it’s about rejecting the idea that there should be one in the first place. It’s about widening the lens, letting people be seen as they are, on their own terms. As this evolution continues, the question we’re left with isn’t whether fashion can be genderless. It’s: how can it not be, when identity itself is so much more than a binary?
