“Seriously, I think the woman was stalking me,” Muther grimaced. He is convinced Editor and Chief of Vogue, Anna Wintour, was standing a bit too close for the comfort. The comfort of this Boston Globe Fashion Reporter, as he explains in his stylephile blogpost by way of captioned cleverly photos. Muther openly dislikes Wintour, often making statements most fashion reporters would sidestep as much as a certain brand of velour jumpsuits. “I have no problem saying negative things,” Muther muses. While casually attired – a light gray collared-shirt peaks out from his cashmere-blend sweater vest, dotted with olive green diamonds. A sand-colored belt holds his charcoal gray boot-cut jeans on his lean frame. Muther, unbound by the constraints of a typical fashion editor, announces almost immediately that he doesn’t see himself as “in fashion.”
Muther fancies himself a reporter who lives on the outside, glancing in at a world whose characterized by achieving “inside” status. Most fashion editors see the world through frosted sunglass shades, casting a pretentious glow on a few, and a disinterested haze over most. Muther’s pieces are unique in that he describes a comprehensive picture of mini-worlds of fashion, art, film, music. He adores writing features because they offer a “chance to bring awareness to people; the topic should be secondary to the discovery.” Muther’s worldview is marked by its inclusive perspective.
Yes, he jets to New York, Paris, Milan to cover fashion week for the Boston Globe. Yes, his work is featured in a newspaper of the highest circulation bracket. Yes, his reporting garnered him a series of awards. But he brushes this information aside quickly, as though it might contaminate his idiosyncratic shine, his truest trophy. “I prefer to focus on looking in from the outside,” Muther beams.
Since Muther doesn’t have rigid boundaries he will often quip witty off-color statements. Rather than make a splash, his off-the-cuff style serves the purpose of showcasing the very nuances that define his perspective. Muther injects images in his articles that transport readers on a mental holiday—sharing his zany inner observations with readers. Moments such as when he described crocs as: “the clogs my sister wore in fifth grade, cross-bred with an Ikea cheese grater” makes readers laugh and forget his troubles. Muther’s gift is not in fashion reporting; it is his earnest, attitude-free storytelling.
Perhaps his social boundary-line is more of a zigzag and his comfort zone is the beat of his favorite French pop electronica singer, Lola Dutronic. It is the innocent way these obscure references creep into Muther’s conversations that silently assures us his hobbies are not elitist eccentricities. Muther again distinguishes himself from throngs of “fashion people” who aim to be irreverent and appear unreachably obscure.
Instead of Muther’s aim being eccentricity, he was just born “odd and a pain in my sister’s ass,” as a boy who never fit in. He went through a goth-like phase in high school, which he categorizes as “soft-goth, with dyed hair and black garb.” Perhaps he was mourning the “horrid” existence of his hometown, Athol, MA. His inability to fit in while living into this dusty old tool-manufacturing town never bothered him much. But now Muther revels in his rebellion: he invites readers to join the parade of magnificent misfits and embrace their own interests through self-expression.
Muther’s tone is delightfully cerebral yet emotionally charged. The secre
t ingredient is his modesty: “I have a hard time putting myself above it all,” he explains. Instead, it appears Muther puts himself on the edge: the edge of the music scene, where he deejays at Middlesex, Enormous; the edge of the gay community, where his reporting unveiled the mystery surrounding a gym that was actually a sex-club; and lastly, at the edge of his seat, where he waits anxiously. “I’m all over the place!” he announces.Muther’s passion to emphasize a novel perspective led him to fearlessly pursue journalism at a young age. In 4th grade he wrote and attempted to distribute his first newspaper. He tried again, issuing a 6th grade paper, though it would be years before Muther’s passion for reporting would elicit a positive response. He graduated with a journalism degree and art history minor from University of Amherst and set out to do any sort of reporting he could— an eager spirit fuelled by a hope to find that niche for his work that didn’t exist in his hometown. As Muther moved from newspaper to newspaper he developed a following. Muther sets an extremely high personal standard. It is a standard developed by observing storytellers and enforced by “being self-driven” he states pointblank.
Straighfowardness and details are important to Muther, and the most masterful storytellers he has encountered – his mother, grandfather and great-grandfather. But perhaps more important to him is sticking to his guns. Sometimes, unpopular but accurate statements shock his readership. For example, Muther feels “Boston Fashion Week is a fashion WEAK.”
Since Muther has been tracking the fashion scene in 3 years his presence and opinion matter greatly to the designers whose collections rely on a warm reception. Luckily his criticism is either professionally constructive or too clever to disagree with. Muther often suggests we give Fashion a Bostonian Home. A proper tent at Copley Square, perhaps. His Boston Fashion Week show reviews of 2009 both graceful diplomatic and blindingly earnest. Muther explains shortcomings of designers, like Sam Mendoza needing to finish his hems, with a gentle nudge that feels refreshingly tactful. Muther reflects: “these fabrics flowed beautifully, but I have to confess that I would not mind seeing some finer finishes on his pieces. But I am still a fan of his vision.” It is a breath of fresh air in this often-catty world. Muther explores this world with wide-eyed curiosity and a love for self-expression through fashion.
The way Muther defines style jives with his own craving to assert a different point of view. Style to Muther is simple: it is “when people see clothing’s function as a means to express one’s self.” Approaching clothing as a form of creative outlet is rare today, Muther notes. The Boston Globe’s Annual Best Dressed list is an opportunity for Muther to further expand people’s definition of style. Rather than have pages “covered with spreads of the same rich older ladies-who-lunch” as Muther laments about prior lists, now Boston Globe reporters ambush edgy punk 12-year-olds who fearlessly sho
wcase individuality.While Muther can weave through fashion-centric conversation with the ease of a Manhattan taxi driver at rush hour, he can do much more. Muther sees himself as a storyteller in a boarder sense. “Storytelling is important because it is self-expression on one hand and communal expression on the other,” Muther says. Muther cites other channels for his expression besides his reporting, but his gift is writing and deejaying an indulgence.
Music and art possess an organic structure that good writing often mimics, making the link between his interests the least obscure thing about this baby-faced 33-year-old. . Muther says he will always envy his favorite memoirists Sedaris and Burroghs for “telling stories in a divergent and honest voice.” Now might be an appropriate time to mention his self-effacing nature, since his pieces at the Globe are celebrated for their candor and distinctiveness.
While Muther could transplant to reside permanently in New York City he finds the Boston Fashion World to be, at the least, amusing and at the most, a great evolution. Muther laughs, “In New York people have attitude and style for miles, but it is all very established there.” Muther chuckles, “I like Boston because it is like parenting a pre-teen, when designers rise up, or new talent gets snotty, it’s like HELLO you are not in New York!” Who would skip to adulthood, especially if that translates to Wintour idol-worship? Muther prefers to avoid sycophants and stalkers.
