Tom Ford arrives at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 1, 2017 in New York City
Tom Ford has said he hates the word ‘masculine’ and insists that sleeping with men doesn’t make you gay in a provocative new interview.
Amid another wildly successful yet chaotic New York Fashion Week, the ageless designer, 56, talked about his new line and how both fashion and sexuality have grown more fluid.
The Tom Ford collection debuted its 2018 spring assemblage this week, and recently debuted fragrances like ‘F***ing Fabulous’ and ‘Noir Anthracite’ — which the designer described to be ‘not particularly masculine’ in aura.
‘I hate that word,’ Ford told The Telegraph this week. ‘I think most men would smell it and instantly think it was masculine … but to me, it’s just a very classic men’s fragrance.
‘It’s perhaps more men-centric but essentially I create unisex scents.
‘If you love something and it smells great, why shouldn’t you wear it? Why can’t a man wear a beautiful peony-based fragrance?’
Tom Ford and husband Richard Buckley attend the 2017 Writers Guild Awards L.A. Ceremony at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on February 19, 2017 in Beverly Hills, California
Tom Ford walks the runway at Tom Ford – Runway during New York Fashion Week at 643 Park Avenue on September 6, 2017 in New York City
A model walks the runway for the Tom Ford SS18 show at Park Avenue Armory
Gigi Hadid walks the runway at Tom Ford New York Fashion Week show
Model wears orange getup on the catwalk at the Tom Ford show, Runway, Spring Summer 2018
Ford said luckily, he’s seen a time where people are able to be themselves.
‘What’s great about this new generation is that they’re growing up in a culture where anything goes … If you’re a guy who paints his nails, that doesn’t mean anything. You’re a man sleeping with a man? So what that doesn’t mean you’re gay.’
Likewise though, the average man is concerned about compromising his masculinity.
‘I think that men have always been just as vain and cared just as much (about their looks) as women, but our culture perhaps didn’t support it,’ said Ford.
‘Let’s look at the 18th century; those guys would go around with little red heels, lace, face powder, beauty marks. There have been moments in time where men expressed their vanity and didn’t worry about whether that compromised their masculinity.’
The brilliant creative director has prospered from his popular, versatile and statement-making fashion collection that appeals to both sexes alike.
Model shows off her midriff while walking Tom Ford show, Runway, Spring Summer 2018
Fashion designer Tom Ford and American Vogue Editor Anna Wintour pose at the book launch party for ‘Tom Ford:Ten Years’ at Bergdorf Goodman October 20, 2004 in New York City
The father of one has traveled the world alongside his longtime partner, Richard Buckley, who he wed back in 2014 and shares his child with.
Ford told The New York Times he’s shown his collection in New York City just a handful of times prior.
‘I’ve shown in Paris a lot. I lived there for 10 years. I’ve shown in Milan a lot. I’ve lived in London for the last 20 years. Shown there. I’ve only shown in New York a few times … but I’ve based my women’s design studio in Los Angeles, and it only made sense to show in New York,’ the designer said.
‘I’m glad I did. But at this point, what I want to do is establish a consistency. This is our look, this is what I do, this is when I show, this is the city I show in. In a way, if you want to succeed at the game, you have to be in it. So I decided to come to New York Fashion Week.’
The Texas-born fashion figure is also renowned as a film producer and screen writer.
His films ‘Nocturnal Animals’ and ‘A Single Man’ were both Oscar-nominated.
More recently, his 2016 drama ‘Nocturnal Animals’ received insanely positive feedback from viewers and even got a standing ovation during its premiere at the Venice Film Festival last year.
Ford told the Hollywood Reporter after the film’s nomination he’s in an amazing place now after years of feeling like ‘an outsider’ as a young boy.
At the time, Ford said he wasn’t fully aware of his sexuality.
‘I knew (I) didn’t belong. I was one of the youngest kids in the class because I jumped ahead [a year], so I was always the smallest,’ he said. ‘I hated team sports. I was more artistic than [I was] a football player.’
Tom Ford and Richard Buckley attend the premiere of ‘Nocturnal Animals’ during the 73rd Venice Film Festival at Sala Grande on September 2, 2016 in Venice, Italy