“Luxury” is a dirty word in these bleak economic times. Out with the $12,000 crocodile bag, in with the reuseable tote, and so on. But if any event can put the test to the new anti-luxury movement, it’s Pitti Immagine Uomo, the biannual menswear market in Florence. Pitti has a special place in its heart for the kind of gent who requires two pairs of citrus-colored slacks—one to wear on the yacht and one to wear off. And the Dow be damned, that kind of gent isn’t exactly hocking his Panerai watches and learning to tell time by the sun. His money is too old (or maybe too Russian) for that kind of desperation.

Still, the Pitti organizers know which way the wind is blowing. And so, after a day boning up on the difference between Italian and Savile Row tailoring, perusing the new range of shoes from Bruno Cucinelli, and fingering what can only be described as an overwhelming variety of cashmere-blend socks, one arrives at the grand opening of WORKWEAR, a special exhibition dedicated to the fashion influence of proles.

At the Stazione Leopolda, the tempo is set by a mashup of “Whistle While You Work” and the Communist anthem, strains of which greet attendees at the door. Inside, the costumes of the workers of the world are united in an artful display, including everything from bellhop uniforms to Hazmat suits. The chain-mail aprons and gloves seem too beautiful to be functional, but as it turns out, Sperian manufactures the stuff for use on industrial butchering floors. Who knew? And who knew that Gianni Versace had referenced Sperian Chainex (TM) in his 1994 couture collection? WORKWEAR has the Versace pieces under plexi, next to the real stuff, which you’re allowed to touch. Elsewhere, archive clothing from the likes of Marni and Walter van Bierendock offer further testimony to runway fashion’s debt to the laboring classes.

That debt, of course, lives on. There’s the humble blue jean, of course, endlessly reproduced and reconsidered and available from countless vendors at this season’s Pitti. But if you’re looking for real evidence that a blue-collar mood has come over even this toniest corner of the fashion world, you can summon it from a single pair of pants. The waxed-cotton, slim-cut, multi-pocket trousers are Lagerfeld, and can be found at the brand’s booth in the main (read: most luxury-oriented) Pitti building inside the Fortezza da Basso. “This is the first time we’ve done cargo pants,” explains the Lagerfeld rep. Up with utility! Even the Kaiser thinks so! And anyway, the Lagerfeld cargos will be the perfect thing to wear with the Lagerfeld hoodie, embroidered with the words “St. Moritz.” In case you were wondering, that item is hanging one rack over.

WORKWEAR is on view through February 14.

KEYWORDS: clothing, fashion, Gianni Versace, Karl Lagerfeld, Pitti, workwear