By now, we’re used to seeing Hillary Clinton in a pantsuit. Sleek, sophisticated, yet understated, it’s become her signature look and speaks to the former presidential candidate’s refined, no-nonsense approach to public life. But there was a time when this rather practical choice sparked a bizarre amount of controversy, underlining the outdated tension between femininity and so-called “power dressing.” In its 2004 debut, her official White House portrait saw the then-first lady breaking the fashion rules in (gasp!) trousers. Lovely as Clinton’s predecessors had looked, they had all worn conservative cuts of delicate dresses or staid skirts. This, of course, aligned with the conventional expectations of femininity at the time, as well as the historically deferential nature of the role.
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But Clinton’s represented something different. The first FLOTUS to enter the White House with her own fully established career, she arrived for her picture donning her staple pantsuit and shocked onlookers in the process. This wasn’t the only notable first for the official White House portrait; it was also the first one done by a Black artist. Simmie Knox had previously painted Supreme Court justices Thurgood Marshall and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and it was her recommendation that earned him the presidential commission. As Knox acknowledged, “Being the first is rather rewarding. That is what you hope for as an individual — that your presence will make a difference,” (via the White House Historical Association). Today, it still hangs where visitors can continue to marvel at its artistry.
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Hillary Clinton became a style icon in the 1990s
During her AppleTV+ show, “Gutsy,” Hillary Clinton revealed that the pantsuit trend was born out of a disappointing necessity. Shockingly, someone had taken a photo up her skirt and wearing pants simply prevented it from happening again. It’s a disturbing backstory, but the former secretary of state was already galvanizing the fashion world by then regardless. As the legendary Anna Wintour pointed out in “In Vogue: The 90s,” “Clinton really turned the idea of what a first lady should be on its head.” After years spent with the Bushes and Reagans, Wintour argued that, “For a long time, there was no style.”
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Thus, “To have such a different first lady in the White House felt like we were moving into a different era.” Clinton paired up with Donna Karan of DKNY — then at the height of her sartorial success — to create the legendary “cold shoulder dress” for an official White House dinner. Clinton laughed, “Next thing I knew, I was on the front page of the New York Times. I guess it made a statement.” She eventually earned her own Vogue spread in 1993 too.
Moreover, prior to 2016, Vogue had yet to ever endorse a political candidate. But crucially, as Clinton ran against Donald Trump, they declared: “The magazine has never spoken in an election with a single voice. Given the profound stakes of this one, and the history that stands to be made, we feel that should change.” She may not have secured the presidency, but the former secretary of state has left an undeniable mark on both politics and fashion.
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