Best dressed statesman?

[Thracozaag]

Probably been discussed before on here, but....

My vote goes for Kofi Annan--he was wearing a stunning dark navy double breasted the other day at a conference. He combined it with a perfect white shirt with a medium spread collar and beautiful tie. Offhand, it looked like a Brioni suit.

 

[Nick M]

No fair, you took mine. As soon as I saw the thread topic, I thought of Annan - does anyone have the inside word on where he buys his suits? Also, Prince Charles, although I guess he's less a statesman and more a figurehead. Oh, and last time this question was posed, I mentioned the late Dutch politician, Pim Fortuyn. I just checked again, and he's still dead, so I guess he's out of the running.

 

[HitMan009]

I have to agree 100%. Kofi Annan is the best dressed statesman. I saw this special on PBS I believe a year or two ago. It was about the UN and in every shot of him, he was always dressed impeccably.

 

[LA Guy]

I think that we are biased towards Kofi just because, in addition to being impeccably dressed, the guy just looks good. If Kofi wore jeans and a white t-shirt with a tux jacket, he would look different, but just as good. On the other hand, if, say Putin wore a beautiful suit instead of the il-fitting numbers he favors, he would probably still look like one of those Russians in full-on Versace Jeans Couture who are plundering the clearance racks at every designer outlet west of Moscow.

 

[LabelKing]

Yes personally I find that Kofi Annan is the best dressed statesman. Also the late Pim Fotuyen9sp) was quite a sharp dresser too.

If one were to look back in history there are a lot more choices. For example King Louis XIV, the Duke of Wellington, and etc.

Also why are noveau riche Russians always stereotypically dressed in rather gaudy Versace otfits? Versace can be very tasteful if done corrrectly.

 

[Glyn]

Hello Everyone,

First post for me.

Arena Magazine (UK) had an artical on Brioni a while back.  The Brioni Chairman stated that Kofi Annan is a frequent wearer of their suits (as is Nelson Mandela).

My vote goes to Kofi as well, although I admire Blair because he at least makes an effort.  However, most statesmen tend to dress very blandly so there isn't much to choose from.

 

[Enrico]

I'd place Silvio Berlusconi high on the list. He is a regular at Caraceni's.

I know that Gerhard Schroder is a Brioni fan but that somehow doesn't prevent him from looking like a second hand car salesman.

I like Blair too, he most be one of the only statesman who wears Paul Smith.

Generally speaking, German, Belgian, Dutch and Scandinavian politicians are the worst dressed statesmen, with a few exceptions ofcourse.

I think Karzai, the current leader of the Afghan coalition, dresses very,very stylish, albeit quite different from other Western leaders.

Well, just my two cents...

 

[clarinetplayer]

I concur with the statements about Annan and Prime Minister Blair. I would add to the list Sergio de Mello, the esteemed UN Commissioner for Human Rights who was tragically murdered this week in Iraq.

 

[GQ Docter]

President of the African National Congress and President of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki, is a particularly well dressed statesmen. Although he does sometimes wear a green suit; which, I suppose, is acceptable considering the nation's flag is primarily green. Cem Ozdemir, MP of the German Green Party, is almong the best dressed statesmen in Europe. Afghan President Hamid Karzai is always dressed well, albeit more native than a traditional statemen's uniform (the suit).

 

[gqelements]

LA Guy, please ease off nationalistic stereotypes. I happen to be Russian by birth and do not appreciate such ridiculous comments. Let's not get in the mentality that style in a nonexistent term in Europe albeit Italy, and a few other countries can definitely consider themselves flagships, Russia is definitely not much worse that the remainder of the continent.
Thank you.

 

[BjornH]

Watching CNN today I realized that Paul Bremer is really making an effort. He always appears on television wearing a cutaway collar and a pocket square. While I do not approve of this whole epesode, I always take notice of what he's wearing.

BH

 

[LA Guy]

gqelements, no offense meant. All I'm saying is that there seems to be a disproportionate number of nouveau riche or nouveau rich wannabes from former Eastern Boc countries (my favorite is the tight Versace black t-shirt wearing guys and their too-much-makeup-wearing wives/girlfriends.) I don't think that my observation that the outlet stores (Loehmann's Beverly Hils being a prime example) are on any given day filled with ill-dressed Russian speakers with an enthusiasm for designer fashion untempered by taste trolling for cut-rate Moschino is altogether unfounded. I've been witness numerous scenes where one of these hold up an absolutely hideous jacket/shirt/pair of pants, and exclaims excitedly in Russian, with the punchline being "Gucci. Gucci."

 

[Thracozaag]

I think that we are biased towards Kofi just because, in addition to being impeccably dressed, the guy just looks good.  

Good point. Cary Grant in a burlap sack would still look better than I would in a K-50 suit.

 

[cristobal]

I'll add a few to the list:

Crown Prince Haakon of Norway
King Juan Carlos of Spain
the late Shah of Iran, Mohammed Reza Pahlavi
*
As for the oft-cited Kofi, I generally agree, but he needs to lose the dove lapel pin he occasionally wears. (I'm not big on pins of any kind.)

 

[matadorpoeta]

sorry to dig up an older thread, but has anyone else noticed that george bush's suit collars often don't fit him around the neck. he's got that gap in the back. does anyone remender carlos menem, former leader of argentina? he get's my vote for best dressed statesman; giant elvis sideburns, powder blue suits with wide lapels, butterfly collar shirts with wild patterns, white shoes--and this was in the early '90s. the guy got re-elected four or five times. he married a former miss universe last year, and she ruined his style. he looks normal now.