Fashion's obsession with horses A powerful and elegant protagonists in some of the most famous fashion campaigns
The horse has an explosive power, a complex physicality, inspires fear and respect, as well as the authority to instill silence in people, thanks to its elegance and unpredictability, an effigy of a class that also in motion does not break down, leaves no room for confusion and impatience. Fashion needs to transmit these same values, which is why in this year and in the past the horses have become the subject of many campaigns, shot in a static or in the most explosive moment. Fashion needs to guarantee respect and to transmit a concrete and reflective self-image, nearly emerged with the force of the act. The symbolic dialogue between the clothes and this animal is strong, a strange relationship exploited by fashion advertisement.
TODAY
Over the last few years it is evident the return of the country aesthetic, emblematic in the spread of the country boots, which can explain the choices adopted in the last year for many advertising campaigns, set in a ranch - as in the case of the shots of the Kardashian sisters for Calvin Klein - but also in prairies and in other wild landscapes, representative of that world. For some fashion houses, the horse is the symbol of the brand, a tradition to pursue, such as Hermès, a Maison born for the production of saddles and equestrian equipment. In some cases, the horse is the logo, for example, Burberry, with a knight riding the animal with a banner, a medieval version. Finally, there are those who adopt it as a motif to honor their founder, as happens with Dior, in fact, we know the passion that Monsieur Dior had for these animals. In the latest Cruise Collection 2019 designed by the Artistic Director Maria Grazia Chiuri, the models perform in what was literally a rodeo, with a strong Hispanic atmosphere. In the advertising campaign is instead Jennifer Lawrence to pose with a black horse, which is hidden between white walls, provoking a sense of surreal calm and a series of beautiful shots.
Two of the greatest fashion photographers in recent years such as Oliviero Toscani and Mario Testino are connected by a large number of shots that involve horses. Toscani made them famous in one of his scandalous shots for Benetton, catching the mating moment. Testino used them much more often, above all for foreign editorials, rarely Testino uses static horses, usually, his horses are photographed dynamic, in a simple trotting walk, galloping or even during a jump. Symbolism, silhouette and power, the best way to describe both fashion and horses.
