Fashion

1. EVOLUTION OF THE SPECIES

In the course of a decade, the paninaro world has been plowed by multiple styles and internal streams, such as Yankee or Preppy, as well as by various declinations of Panoz, from the bourgeois and combed Gallo to the more aggressive and sporty Randa, passing through crossovers with other scenarios. Precisely for this very reason, what made the paninaro movement extremely fascinating and enigmatic was the ability of its followers to introduce totally new and disorienting aesthetic elements. Once it reached its peak of popularity between 1986 and 1987, the paninari fashion has in fact continued to evolve, being influenced and influencing the surrounding pop culture until the end of the decade, when the appeal for this aesthetic wanes in correspondence of a new generational change.

In the second half of the 1980s, for example, the paninari came to adopt elements from other scenes, as in the case of the leather biker jacket, typical of Rockabillies. A different matter is the Ray-Ban Olympian case, the iconic frame worn by Peter Fonda in Easy Rider, which after becoming part of the paninaro look also passed through the hands of the Mods. This, thanks to their mid-century silhouette is one of the many points of contact with the aesthetics of the movement born in England thanks to brands like the Who and the Jam. With Mod, in the Italian provinces, the paninari also shared Big Smith paramilitary jackets - called "Canadians" -, often used as an alternative to parkas that were not always readily available. Dr. Martens also became part of the panozzo wardrobe thanks to the influence of the British duo, Bros. Musical tastes, where Duran Duran and Spandau Ballet dominated, even, were partly shared with New Waver and New Romantic, as well as the mullet fashion.

THE NEW WAVERS, THE NEW ROMANTICS, AND THE MULLET TREND.

Paradoxically, the paninari - historically associated with the macho and conservative culture of Milano da Bere - had elevated to their idols artists, such as Boy George, who embodied a Queer philosophy, expressed also through an androgynous and a sexuality aesthetic, at the time considered unconventional. Contrary to what one might think, one of the most representative symbols of stylistic evolution was Jovanotti who, thanks to his great attention to the trends of youth culture, knew how to be inspired by street style as well as influence the paninari. It is precise with Jovanotti's leaving the scene, following his departure for military service in 1988, that, symbolically, between 1990 and 1991, the long decade of the paninaro ended with an implicit "break ranks".

For many of the older generation, the time had come to devote themselves to family and work, while the younger generation ended up being seduced by new phenomena such as hip hop and skate culture, toward which they gravitated also thanks to brands loved by paninari, such as Vans and O'Neil. 

2. THE BRANDS 

An essential aspect of the paninari aesthetic were the outfits, made up of key brands and items in the Panozzo "uniform". Above all, the Moncler Grenoble model, introduced into the scene by middle and upper-middle-class youth, is an example of how youth fashion was often the result overlooked connection between how social class and environments can shape youth fashion. "At first we would wear Dolomite [puffers], then since everyone had it, even the tackiest of people, we switched to the mandatory orange Moncler," recalls a member of the scene.

Most of the wardrobe, however, spoke proudly Italian. In the years when haute couture dominated Milan, Made in Italy manufacturers certainly knew how to establish themselves with originality and research on materials in the field of casualwear. Hence the appeal of Massimo Osti's creations for Stone Island, C.P. Company, and Bonneville, as well as the intuitions of Elio Fiorucci, the bright sweatshirts and t-shirts of Best Company, the sportswear of Virtus Palestre, for winter knitwear by Loro Piana, Boggi, Marina Yachting or Foxhound. At the same time, the sentiment of roaring Americanism contributed to the affirmation of the so-called "Yankee" style. This influence can be traced both in the nomenclature of Italian products, such as Americano denim and in the choice of garments: from Durango boots to the Avirex B15 and G1 aviator jackets - worn by Tom Cruise in Top Gun.

Sleeveless puffers and vests were also all the rage, we must also remember the very expensive Timberland sheepskin and the vests with leather reinforcement on the chest Schott, El Charro, or Lee. Fay, whose iconic Quattro Ganci jacket nodded to the metal toggles of the New York firefighter uniforms. The result is the affirmation of the Preppy style, a street and indigenous declination of the way in which the well-off young Americans of the '80s - among deck shoes and Ralph Lauren sweaters - had in turn reinterpreted the Ivy League style of their parents' campuses. A relaxed and refined style that was particularly popular among paninaro girls, the so-called 'sfitinzie’.

FROM DURANGO BOOTS TO AVIREX B15 AND G1 AVIATOR JACKETS.

 

Thus, the classic Timberland Chukka boot - often referred to as "Cucca" with macho naivety -, the equally American-style Red Wing, or Durango cowboy boots alternated with the more sporty Nike Wimbledon, the elegant sturdiness of the Paraboot or Sebago Koala, and Preppy icons such as Timberland or Sebago sailing moccasins, and canvas sneakers by Vans or Sperry.

Although comics and magazines conveyed the paninaro aesthetic even in the most remote provinces, in Italy - in a country still far from e-commerce and fast fashion -, the scene was also made of local variations on the brands adopted in Milan. To the most classic Lee, Levi's or expensive Armani jeans - strictly high-waisted with a mommy or balloon fit - were often alternated with Pop 84, Chambers with their removable patches, or in the province of Cuneo, Rica Lewis, which, both in the tab on the belt loop and in the models, looked to the most famous (and almost homonymous) American competitors.

In Genoa - where the paninari took the name of Albarini, from the wealthy neighborhood of Albaro Alta from which they mostly hailed - garments coming from sailing and water sports were adopted. Among these, the Slam anoraks as an alternative to the Henry Lloyd ones, but also Marina Yachting, Polar, and Sundek. In Bologna, the Ocean Star brand was widespread, while in the province of Prato the classic Winchester watches were replaced by Flipper divers.

 

In the area of Imola, on the other hand, it was Wampum, with a W logo in imitation of the U of the famous Uniform that dressed many paninari. Often, in smaller towns, it was the stock of a single store that shaped the aesthetics of the local paninari, as in the case of the historic Villamarena in Sestri Levante. Not to mention countless brands that have slipped into oblivion such as Navigation D’Afrique, Frank Scozzese, Chipie, and Controvento, but also established ones such as Sisley, Lacoste, and Murphy & Nye which, however, were found only in some geographical areas rather than in others.

Needless to say, compromising on a budget meant that one could risk failing the strict outfit checks of the most elite and uncompromising paninari. This is the case of Lumberjacks used instead of Timberlands, or Faciba down jackets in imitation of Moncler ones. The desire to appear despite the lack of capital, therefore, often pushed one to take the risk of being labeled as ‘cinghio’ or tamarins.

3. ACCESSORIES

As you know, it's the details that make the difference, something the paninari were masters of. Setting a clear line between a Gallo di Dio and a China was not just the logo on a quilt, but also the accessories.  Burlington's elegant argyle socks with their metallic pins to be flaunted by turning up jeans, El Charro's yellow leather motorcycle gloves as well as its imposing buckles with a Western flavor, as well as the equally opulent Winchester watches, were essential must-haves in assigning street cred to young people, so much so that the market offered budget or counterfeit versions.

According to the paninaro decalogue, the watch had to be worn above the cuff, in a gesture of ostentation that links the paninari to the lawyer Gianni Agnelli, who had already launched the trend in previous decades. It can even be argued that the FIAT patron, with his eccentric way of dressing, was an ante-litteram paninaro, inspiring an iconography and a mentality adopted even by the Yuppie of Milano da Bere - as witnessed by the frequent citations in the film of the same name with Massimo Boldi and Ezio Greggio. 

Surprisingly, though, the scene also boasted DIY nuances that one wouldn’t expect from these practices more related to other subcultures. This is testified by the icon of the angry Donald Duck icon hand-drawn on the thighs of Levi's 501. Its origins, which recall the American campus students adorned clothing with references to confraternities and classes, is attributed to a paninaro named Massimo, tired of the fact that the brand Naj Oleari made its patches with comic book characters thinking only to the female audience.  The chap had come up with this intuition because tired of the fact that Naj Oleari designed patches with a female-only clientele in mind.