Designer of the Week 07 / 12 / 08 : Thom Browne

[Servo2000]

Thom Browne - Designer of the Week 07 / 12 / 08

Biography

Thom Browne (1965) is the designer of line under his own name as well as the first to produce collections for Brooke Brother's Black Fleece line. He has no formal fashion training and instead recieved a degree in business from Notre Dame. Before creating his line, he worked alongside Ralph Lauren in creating Club Monaco.

Work

Critically lauded for re-invigorating the American suit, the Browne suit is highly distinctive and is primarily noted for its somewhat unusual fit: at its extreme almost absurdly cropped and shrunken but more typically noted for its severity (an apparent reaction to the ever more accepted ideas of "business casual").

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Spring 2007

Fall 2007

Spring 2008

Fall 2008

Interviews / Articles

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Thom Browne in New York

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The Countdown (Season II) Thom Browne (Refinery29)

A New Trend for Men's Wear (October 2006, The New York Times

New York Mag (Brief Bio / Collections)

The Dapper Mr. Browne (August, 2006)

[Liberation1945]

it should be noted that thom browne actually thinks pants SHOULD have a break. i know. branesplode.

[sHero]

Thanks for the good read. Fall 2007 would have to be my favourite collection of his.

[jeepster]

it should be noted that thom browne actually thinks pants SHOULD have a break. i know. branesplode.

Well, this makes sense, but his look is a reaction to the sloppy and overly long look on the runway, as told by whoever posted that response in WAYWT chat (chronoaug? m1sterko? I forget who was in the conversation)

[PAID VACATION]

he walked past me the other day on the street wearing his dress shorts with blazer, shirt, and tie, high socks and thick soled shoes. he turned and smiled at me and i thought its all about confidence, dude looked smashing.

[soonami]

Is that model wearing white athletic socks with those oxfords?

[leroi]

yessir. with thom browne shoes (or, i would say, any heavy leather-soled oxford really) it's sort of a must to have thick socks, and athletic socks are nice when walking in a city with them.

[headcoat]

Fuck the haters, Thom Browne is a marketing and style god.

[Liberation1945]

^ and it helps that's he's a handsome, charming man...no homo, but i'd go homo for him if i was homo.

i know thom already does short/relatively slim cuts, but i want to seem him do something really angular and slick one day and use much skinnier models and all that...it'd be interesting.

[Guest]

Septemberists video was beautiful hadn't seen that before

they have octopus in the hamptons? didn't know ...

didn't understand the purpose of the funeral but the feelings evoked from putting the nails in the coffin are powerful as any

the cycle of clothing is akin to the cycle of man? birth - life - change - death

we live and die in our clothes?

I love browne's approach to shows he's very multitalented himself ..

[Halifamous]

Correction, Thom didn't create Club Monaco with Ralphie, Ralphie bought CM in 1999 and Thom was integral in running the brand in the early 2000's.

Club Monaco was started in the 80's by Joe Mimran and Alfred Sung in Toronto. I'm assuming Thom was responsible for the brands divergence from ripping off Jil Sander into a more colourful, americana based design. The line has since returned to ripping off Jil.

[conan.]

hey servo write more of these or outsource the job to other people too... i am uninterested in thom browne but when it's all in a handy post like this i read and learn thnx

[mpcec]

hey servo write more of these or outsource the job to other people too... i am uninterested in thom browne but when it's all in a handy post like this i read and learn thnx

Seconding this. Great idea for a thread series.

[Kodak]

Can I write one?

[Servo2000]

Anyone who wants to write one can PM me and I'll get you a slot. I'll be back as soon as I have time to open up some discussion points for this thread to get it going.

If anyone's interested in writing any other articles, on designers or otherwise, let me know.

[Tyro1]

it should be noted that thom browne actually thinks pants SHOULD have a break. i know. branesplode.

What interview is this in relation to?

taken from ID MAGAZINE FEB 2008

THOM BROWNE'S TOP TO TOE WARDROBE GUIDE

SHOES "Heavy black leather wingtip shoes with no socks." SOCKS "If you're going to wear socks you have to wear knee highs." TROUSERS "Make sure they sit right at the top of the ankle. I tell my customers if they want to be more comfortable their trouser leg can hit the top of the shoe, but it must not break on to the shoe. My trouser length is 2-3 inches shorter than normal, with a turn up as well." SHIRT "Everyone should own a white round collared shirt. Unironed. If everything's made so seriously you have to give the feeling of 'I don't care that much'. There's nothing more boring then (sic) some guy who looks like he spends way too much time getting ready." TIE "Your tie should be worn long, with the tip of the tie tucked in to the top of the trousers. A tie bar looks good too." WATCH "I do love watches. Every man should have a watch. I always find vintage watches the most interesting. Everything today is so big; I like watches that are a lot smaller and tighter and closer to the arm." GREY SUIT JACKET "I always wear a grey jacket. There's something so beautiful about grey. There are so many beautiful shades. It's so timeless and rich."

It's actually a really good article/interveiw on him.... I'm too lazy to type more of it out though!!

[soonami]

^^

Right, I remember reading somewhere that TB generally did not like the looks of socks with his suits, especially white ankle socks. I think he wears no-show socks which is fine, but white socks poking through though provocative, just looks silly

[Guest]

Anyone who wants to write one can PM me and I'll get you a slot. I'll be back as soon as I have time to open up some discussion points for this thread to get it going.

If anyone's interested in writing any other articles, on designers or otherwise, let me know.

PM'd

10char

[jcotteri]

tnx for another one of these servo.. I did enjoy some of the older ones you did, great reads.. will comment more when i have time

[seksu!]

What interview is this in relation to?

It's actually a really good article/interveiw on him.... I'm too lazy to type more of it out though!!

i could scan it if u ppl want

thom is so really handsome!~

[mlwdp]

He's a excellent designer.

[mr fluffernutter]

*an

[Servo2000]

Some thing's I've been thinking about recently:

People seem to frequently begrudge Browne's recent critical acclaim and seem to consistently refer to his work as being too of-the-moment (a flash in the pan, etc...). After four seasons, I'd say it's clear that he's found his niche and that he intends to work within it as long as necessary.

The belgians (Ann Demeulemeester, for instance) or even Yohji are notorious, if not renowned, for essentially the same thing: picking something and working it over and over again to find something new.

The bias seems to come from those professing "the suit is dead" ideals - that his cuts and more outlandish pieces still fall wholly within the real of "dead" and outdated fashion ideals versus those following (purportedly) more aggressively modern ideas (be it Willhelm or Geller).

In the world of, at least American, suiting Browne seems relevant and influential: is his apparently limited sphere or influence his "critical" downfall? What is it (that those of you who find him pointless / irrelevant / artistically unnacomplished) need for him to demonstrate to see progress or merit?

Those of you who think otherwise (I certainly feel that I fall somewhat on this side): do his strengths overcome his "weaknesses?" What do you see in his work that might be missed by his detractors?

Some food for thought:

And about him having no legacy, I dont see anything wrong with that, people are more than happy to pay for the extremly high prices of Slimane (were?), Plokhov, Poell and the like, which dont really have a "legacy", but they are the ones who innovate or provide a different aesthetic and thus make their pieces worth the price to some.

In reference to Browne's "Circus" collection:

This is a hilariously ham-handed attempt at exposing the spectacle of fashion.

At the same time it is so perfect, I love everything about this. You can't in good conscience wear Julius or RO and believe you're not being picked out as a loony, so why not shoot for the other end of the spectrum?

And for some laughs, the Thom Browne Outside the US? thread.

[geekbonchic]

/wannabe fashion erudition

Especially after viewing that video clip, I think that Browne is doing a certain part to bring a critical eye towards suiting, towards how attention to detail translates into an examination of how we express and understand masculinity. The emphasis upon the theatrical in Browne's shows only seems to stress this point. Yeah, we can point and laugh and wonder what on earth he was smoking, but I'm sure he knows this. He's forcing his audience to engage with the materials and construction of his suits. By disregarding all the functional rationales of the suit, the ultimate staple in a man's wardrobe, Browne reconfigures a distinct and defined visual vocabulary for the purposes of aesthetic exploration.

[Servo2000]

/wannabe fashion erudition

I wonder if I can get my title changed to "wannabe fashion erudite."

[geekbonchic]

I think as inventor, I get dibs.

[Servo2000]

... towards how attention to detail translates into an examination of how we express and understand masculinity ... He's forcing his audience to engage with the materials and construction of his suits.

This is one of the things I've been interested in, especially recently: the apparent level of quality in his work. The pricing and seemingly excessive quality and detailing only, to me, emphasizes his desire for us to understand the work "seriously" despite its absurdity. Especially compared to / unlike most designers (especially within the past couple of years) his own line has not compromised on either front.

[Calden]

In case anyone is interested Scott Schuman (The Sartorialist) asked Alan Flusser a couple questions regarding Thom Browne a couple years ago. I don't think he's a fan...

SS: New York is at the beginning of a menswear revival. Michael Bastian, Cloak, Barker Black are creating collections with a level of sophistication we have not seen here in years. Thom Browne is the lighting rod of this group. His designs are based on the classic work of the Brooks Brothers/ JFK 60’s, which I know you are a big fan of, so what is your take on Thom Browne?

AF: Those are the most irresponsible clothes I’ve ever seen in my 30 years in fashion. To charge that much money for a coat that is deliberately short……the whole thing is like, childlike. I understand the sensibility; believe me I understand, it but if you want to sell a customer that, that to me is… I’m sure the allure is that is “new classics†but that is as “fashiony†as Dolce & Gabbana.

SS: But don’t you think that is the customer who is buying it?

AF: As long as people understand that - it's ok. As long as they understand it is of limited longevity, that is ok but I don’t think they sell it like that. Thom Browne doesn’t wear like that. I think it is irresponsible - if I was Bergdorf I would be out of my mind.

LINK

[geekbonchic]

Mr. Flusser's sensibilities lie very much out of the realm of fashion and land squarely in terms of practical men's clothing. But given the economic slowdown (reading DNR gets pretty depressing nowadays), I think the industry has been trying very hard to expand its scope to be as inclusive as possible; hedging their bets artistically and economically. The last two openers for Pitti Uomo are sign enough of changing times and tastes, I think.