Manning up

As far as Dominant Men go, we want to know them, date them and dress like them. ROCHELLE PINTO investigates why some of the most exciting style inspirations for women today are men

- ROCHELLE PINTO

To kick off my annual rereading of Yuval Noah Harari's Sapiens, I flip to a random page and come face-to-face with Louis XIV and Barack Obama. The Sun King, with his towering bouffant, velvet cape bedecked with gold fleur-de-lis and high-heeled court shoes, looks like a tasty French pastry a stark contrast to Obama's...well, navy blue suit. In the caption, Harari the historian delivers a devastating coup de grâce: "Dominant men have never looked as dull and dreary as they do today."

Thankfully, that was written in 2011. More than a decade later, menswear and its target audience have liberated themselves from the tyranny of navy blue suits and tan dress shoes. (Before you accuse me of sensationalism, remember that in 2018, Obama generated much international debate because he wore ecru to a press briefing.) From Lewis Hamilton to Vijay Varma, Diljit Dosanjh to Pedro Pascal and Jeff Goldblum, some of the most exciting figures on our mood boards and saved posts today are male.