Do we still need bras?

We were used to see the best 70s/80s top models walk down the catwalk in see-through silk tops, showcasing boldly and shamelessly their female forms, because in those years 'it was normal'. We got used to think - in the first 2000s - that gaining an extra size in the bra thanks to a push-up would have made us more feminine. But today, taking a look at the most important fashion shows, from Prada to GmbH, it's easy to notice how this "no bra" movement has put down roots and is spreading also among the new generations. Fashion makes the rules and also in this case influences our style chioices, but the real question is: how did we get here? Which brands have given up bras and why?

Looking back at the story of the bra you can see its ups and downs, pros and cons. In the XIV century women would wear corsets to enhance their forms and to make everything stay "up", even though it meant suffering and feeling costrained for hours and hours. The XX century was the century of the development of the first real bra, an item designed to "hide" the femininity and give a more masculine look, along with the 20s trend. According to the urban legend, the bra was invented by Otto Titzling (which sounds a bit like "titties sling"), who allegedly had lost the court case against Phillip de Bra (which instead sounds like "fill in the bra"). This little story began with the 1971 book Bust-Up: The Uplifting Tale of Otto Titzling and the Development of the Bra and later gained fame as a comic song in the movie Beaches, directed by Garry Marshall.

Within a few years, the Bullet Bra takes over, giving prominence to forms, cleavage and to a femininity that would be later put aside during the most free years of history: the hippy 70s. In those years the bra not only was not used, but was considered oppressive and patriarchal. Germaine Greer, well-known feminist author of the period, declared:

"Bras are a ridiculous invention, but if you put as a rule to not wear a bra, you're accepting another repression.

What the feminist movement was trying to highlight is that the bra was an item that, for its form and its conception, reduced women merely to sexual objects. On the Atlantic City boardwalk was placed a dumpster where feminist women would throw high heels, fake eyelashes, curlers, make-up, Vogue and Playboy magazines, as well as corsets, garters and bras. A strong demonstration act meant to communicate their hostility against conventions, but above all intented to communicate the need for freedom of those women who were starting the emancipation process and the battle for gender equality.

In the 80s bodysuits steal the show, simple and refined, but the arrival of the plastic surgery, always more popular in the USA and in Europe, starts the trend of big and functional bras.

Thanks to Madonna and Jean Paul Gaultier the bra would later come back in the magic 90s fashion - the Cone Bra worn during her Blonde Ambition Tour is now iconic -.

In 2018 the female world, and not only, is divided: there's who still doesn't get the #freethenipples philosophy supported by Kendall Jenner and who made this a trend, but the fashion system knows where to stand. The latest fashion shows ignore completely the bra, unless it's a bralette or a crop to show as a simple top - Calvin Klein and its underwear docet -. The bra is no longer an "under-item", but it's something to be worn boldly during summer. The proof arrives from Kendall in Elsa Schiapparelli at the last Cannes Film Festival, Cara Delevigne in Atelier Versace on the Valerian premiere red carpet and the queen of R&B Rihanna at the 2014 CFDAs.

Loewe has found the perfect solution to get rid of the bra: wear it over the clothes.

Between transparencies and lingerie in plain sight, it's pretty clear that free the nipples is the new trend. Alyx's green pistachio little dresses unveil the female forms, like Maison Rabih Kayrouz which, beneath the innocence of chiffon and ruffles, reveals femmininity in its purest essence, without ever been vulgar, but on the other hand, paying homage to women's strenght and their natural elegance. These see-through pieces hadn't been on the catwalk for quite a long time: this trend made history in 1968, when Yves Saint Laurent introduced the "nude look" with the black transparent blouse worn by a braless model during FW 68/69. In those feminist years YSL made the rules.

At this point we must wonder: do we still need bras? For the runway the answer is no, all we need are mini tops that have nothing to do with underwear.