Jezebel recently published a lengthy article/interview with Sonia Agostino. If you don’t recognize that name (and I didn’t), she’s a fashion designer specializing in latex. Her most recent claim to fame is providing the outfits for Kylie Jenner in her recent controversial photoshoot.
I thought it was interesting because she repeatedly emphasizes her lack of interest in fetish and kink. She originally started with the Baroness – who is very much a fetish designer – yet has evolved to use latex outside a specifically fetish focused scene. I think her work presents an interesting question – can you create non-fetish fashion from a material inextricably linked to fetish? I’m not sure she’s succeeded in that yet. Celebrities who wear her clothes seem to do so to create an alternative/edgy/kinky image. People still like latex for the fetishistic message that comes along with it, even if the clothing is interesting and elegant in it’s own right. Personally, I hope she succeeds in broadening the appeal of latex. It’s a fun material and I’d love to see non-kinky friends of mine trying it out.
This image is entitled Bird Smoke and is from Sonia Agostino’s site.