American Exceptionalism

Ralph Lauren's unique American perspective has made for a riveting Fall 2023 collection

- SUFFIAN HAKIM

“THE WORLD IS OPEN TO US and each day is an occasion to reinvent ourselves.” It’s one of Ralph Lauren’s most repeated quotes, a rallying cry by the 83-year-old American billionaire for independence, creativity and evolution of the self. Critics of the brand say it is an ironic quote, since Ralph Lauren’s products are exercises in dressing the genteel in styles that hardly differ from year to year, and in silhouettes, materials and expressions that are decidedly American, or at least, Western.

Obviously, these critics are offering their animadversion with a limited perspective of the brand, possibly keeping only its classic polo shirts in mind.

But the Ralph Lauren brand is so much more than that, and one needs only look at its Fall 2023 collection to have a sense of the breadth and artistry of what the brand has to offer.

Take the Cafe Racer cow leather-lined bomber from the Polo Ralph Lauren Fall 2023 collection, whose leather bears a gorgeous, deeply aged and weathered effect and is as far from the brand’s iconic polo shirts as it gets. It harkens to the greaser charm of ’80s America, but its mode is effectively modern, especially when paired with some of the other items in this collection.