Ethereal, other-worldly: A look at lunar fashion through the years

Over the decades, before and after Man landed on the moon, it has served as inspiration. Most of the world’s largest fashion labels have had lunar-inspired collections. Ethereal and striking, some of these creations also made it off the ramp and onto real-world red carpets.

In 2016, for instance, Nicole Kidman wore an Alexander McQueen gown — black, dusted with ‘stars’, the moon unfolding in its seven visible phases at the waist and hem.

Donatella Versace’s autumn-winter menswear collection for 2016-17 was a tribute to space missions, particularly NASA’s, with bomber jackets made to look like tin foil, some of them covered in embroidered constellations.

To commemorate the 45th anniversary of the moon landing, Nike released a limited-edition Nike Air Max Lunar90 SP, sneakers with a moon crater print drawn from real photographs, and red and white stripes on the back right heel paired with blue and white stars on the back left heel, as a tribute to the Americans who had gone where no man had gone before.

And in 2010, Giorgio Armani’s Spring Couture collection was luminescent and all about the moon. With a giant crescent moon forming the backdrop of his ramp and reflecting on the runway, the models showcased shimmering gowns, black jackets with crescent moon-like lapels — everything had a sheen as if moonbeams were reflecting off the creations.

And then there was the designer Pierre Cardin, so smitten by the vision of men landing on the moon that he visited NASA and became the first civilian to ever put on the spacesuit worn by Buzz Aldrin. He then designed his own spacesuits for NASA.

But before all that, in the same year as the moon landing but before it actually happened, Cardin held a 1969 show titled Space Age and Futurism, featuring shiny capes and dresses whose hems flared like rockets.

To designer Nachiket Barve, fashion inspired by the moon or anything related to space travel, is an eternal theme.

“There’s nothing like ‘in-trend’ now as everyone wears whatever they want. But look at any period since the moon landing, and you will find the moon as motif. We’ve kept going back to the momentous event in celebration, and as inspiration. Currently, you’ll see the space-suit reflected in athleisure outfits — the puffer jacket, the silver foil material. It can be seen in brands around the world.”