URBAN EXPLORATION From Pennsylvania mines to Klondike gold miners, from Admiral Byrd’s Antarctic expeditions to Iditarod adventures, from the forests of the Pacific Northwest to the English countryside. To end up in our streets, in our offices, in our subways. Brands with a long tradition, with a strong heritage and global appeal, able, over time, to open their horizons to the world of fashion and first of all clear the concept of urban outdoor. Today, wearing outdoor clothing in urban contexts is a completely normalized trend. In recent years, even in the world of high fashion, the trend has spread in such a way that in the luxury collections there are contaminations of materials and technologies previously reserved for functional brands. Viceversa, historic brands focused solely on sports users, have begun to collaborate with fashion designers and streetwear brands, becoming adopted by the urban scene. Technical clothing has become avant-garde. Aesthetics and authenticity give the person who wears them a sense of exclusivity. But dressing with outdoor clothing also means telling your own taste and posi-
tion in the society through these garments. Beyond the fashion sector, therefore, the trend has spread into the cultural bubble. Wearing outdoor clothing has become a kind of statement. But the appropriation of technical clothing in the metropolitan context becomes more than just an aesthetic interest. Although it may seem alienating, the reasons are multiple and valid. One of the driving factors of this phenomenon is certainly the consumer’s attention to garments capable of combining performance and resistance. An extreme interest in the functional aspect and in the technology of
materials, related to the trend of a healthier lifestyle. To become livable, our cities must put people back at the center, focusing on increasingly sustainable mobility, focused on public transport, cycling and pedestrians. All this cannot happen without a radical change in clothing standards, even in the workplace. That’s why fashion can actually influence lifestyle, helping to make it more active and compatible with soft mobility. Finally, the new generations, who are proving to be more sensitive day by day to issues relating to climate change and the environment. Millennials are increasingly seeking contact with nature, practicing activities such as trekking and climbing, mixing them, in terms of style, with a more everyday mood. They feel the need to be outdoors more, finding motivation and inspiration. Wearing these clothes becomes a kind of manifesto of their ideals. It is a stylistic choice driven by a new spiritual awareness towards nature and the special need to escape from the city, while staying in the city.
