Men’s fashion tends to be neglected, but Alejandro Gomez Palomo is giving us hope. During an otherwise underwhelming and predictable week of men’s shows in New York, Palomo Spain Fall 2017 made waves and turned heads with their hyper-feminine take on menswear. Florals, exposed skin, and high heels feel both natural and strikingly erotic in the hands of Palomo. Entitled Objeto Sexual, the collection showcased Palomo’s specific idea of male sexuality, an outlook that is assuredly optimistic, potent, and altogether runs counter to trends prescribed by heteronormative standards.

Palomo started his eponymous line only recently in 2015, after graduating from London College of Fashion. His past collections draw inspiration from Virginia Woolf’s gender-bending protagonist, Orlando, and the women in Henri Rousseau’s exotic paintings. In the short time he’s been on the scene, Palomo has already garnered the attention of fashion’s most important players; his New York debut was made possible with the support of the CFDA and W mag confidently proclaimed it the most exciting show of the week. His creations have since been worn by likes of Miley Cyrus and Mike Hadreas of Perfume Genius.
Nothing can be considered subtle in Palomo’s perverse, romantic vision of fantasy. The most recent campaign, shot by fellow Spaniard Kito Muñoz, is charged with the same explicit homoeroticism as the runway show itself. The images are anything but “safe for work,” with a heavy dose of nudity and… straight up sex. Machismo comes up against Palomo’s own brand of effeminacy. With a bucolic setting, they don’t feel pornographic, but instead read as tender and utopian, whimsical and passionate. It’s rare in the world of fashion that a new talent emerges to shake things up; the future of Palomo Spain is bright and frilly.