“Liberate rather than repress”: why corsets are having a fashion moment

Few items of clothing are as tied to controversy and body politics as the corset. Case in point: the furore this week over photos actress Anya Taylor-Joy posted on Instagram of herself wearing a corset, complete with an hourglass emoji caption.

The comments below gave a nice sample of the polarized thinking surrounding the much-maligned garment. “Can’t we normalize starvation? said one of them. “What a terrible, terrible thing to do to yourself or share with others,” said another. Others have gone the other direction, since “There is such a misconception with corsets. Everyone relax”, to “Everyone is 'body positive!!!' until it's a skinny person in a corset", or, concisely, just fiery emojis.

Despite their associations with unrealistic body image, patriarchal repression and physical discomfort – when properly laced, they are known to reduce lung capacity and even cause organ deformation – corsets not only persist, but have a moment. Beyoncé, a leading figure in how the fashion winds blow, has just been featured on a series of CR Fashion Book covers wearing corsets.

The latest fashion London week featured several . At Simone Rocha, models wore corsets sewn from delicate fabrics like tulle and organza, as part of a collection inspired by Queen Victoria's mourning dress. At designer Dilara Findikoglu's lively and rebellious show, which explored themes of toxic masculinity, soccer jerseys and bomber jackets were transformed with corsets. But it was the extreme corsetry at the recent John Galliano show for Maison Margiela in Paris that really galvanized the revival. It was a model from this collection that Taylor-Joy wore.

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