Milan Fashion Week opens with exhibition on male aesthetics

From 18th-century cloak clasps and shoe buckles to today’s unisex rings and bracelets, the exhibition “The Gentleman – Style and Jewelry in Menswear” is a historical investigation into male aesthetics. It opens on January 16 at Palazzo Morando | Costume Moda Immagine, on the occasion of Milan Fashion Week.

Produced by the Municipality of Milan and Palazzo Morando in collaboration with the Cultural Association Stile e Storia, and under the patronage of the Lombard Goldsmiths Association, the Italian National Chamber of Fashion, the “Federico Chabod” Department of Historical Studies at the University of Milan, the Ministry of Culture and Rai Lombardia, the exhibition uses original pieces, historical documents and garments to invite reflection on the cultural and symbolic meaning of ornament in the construction of male identity, CE Report quotes ANSA.

The exhibition route follows a chronological structure, recounting the evolution of jewelry and ornamentation in men’s fashion from the 18th century to the contemporary era.

As reported by CE Report, the exhibition opens with the 18th century, a time when upper-class European men naturally wore elaborate jewelry, decorative accessories and richly adorned clothing. Rings, signet pendants and buckles were not merely luxury items, but tools of social and symbolic communication. Ornamentation was an integral part of male self-representation.

The journey continues into the 19th century, marked by a gradual restraint of decorative exuberance. The bourgeois ideal imposed a sober, measured and rational image of men: jewelry survived, but changed in form and meaning. Discreet and functional objects such as cufflinks, tie pins and watch chains appeared.

During the 20th century, while modernity pushed toward standardization of dress, artists, intellectuals and icons of music and cinema brought ornament back to the center of individual expression. The exhibition concludes with a section dedicated to the contemporary era, where men rediscover the freedom to adorn themselves beyond boundaries between masculine and feminine, function and decoration.

“Many modern and contemporary ornaments,” explains curator Mara Cappelletti, “are created by designers with the aim of celebrating the authenticity of the people who wear them, overcoming conventions, prejudices and trends. They are designed for everyone, without barriers of gender or age.”