Ivan Wolf: TikTok, Fashion, and Breaking Gender Norms

Trying to break gender norms has always been a battle, but it seems like 2020 has been the year to redefine everything. Social media became the backdrop for this change. To single out one platform, TikTok is a place where people can develop their style without any societal or cultural boundary. If you’re on (non-straight) TikTok, you have definitely seen boys in skirts or gender-neutral makeup. And before you ask, it’s not just a trend.

Scrolling through TikTok, I was always in awe of the individuals encouraging people to be themselves, without any fear. Even if makeup has always been put on cis men, particularly in the modeling industry, many societies still carry a social stigma around makeup, which is considered feminine. But today, within our generation, each individual is now exploring the outer reaches of what “gender” really means. Both cis and non-cis men are encouraged to be creative without any fear, and now feel free to wear makeup, skirts, or dresses, put on nail polish if they want to, deconstructing both femininity and masculinity. A few months ago, Ivan Wolf (@ivnextinct), appeared on my For You Page. His boldness and confidence made me eager to know more about his personal story.

For people who don’t know who you are, can you give a short introduction of who you are and what you do?

I don’t like describing myself as an artist, but I guess in this realm I would call myself a creator and photographer, mainly focusing on self-portrait photography, and visualizing certain concepts that I have… and also doing stupid TikTok videos.

When I was little, I wanted to go to college or university just because it looked really cool in movies. And I wanted to have the whole college experience. But as I grew older, I started thinking about how I don't need university to pursue what I like to do. At this point in my life, I’m mostly focusing on social media, photography and other interests of mine but they are not monetary. I want to work in media and photography. Maybe something like fashion, in the future. There's honestly a lot of things I want to do. But I'm taking it a step at a time. And in a few years, I'll concentrate more on those other things.

Who or which things inspire you the most?

I guess everyday things like music or things I see in real life such as buildings, or people with cool outfits. I honestly get my inspiration from the most random things, nothing really concrete. It’s just my interpretation of whatever I saw or heard, or something I just came up with in my mind.

In terms of fashion, I really enjoy Iris Van Herpen for her futuristic ideas. I love Prada and Alexander McQueen, Gucci too. And Calvin Klein, for sure. But I don’t have a particular niche that I can think of because I’m still growing and making my way into fashion. I’m learning a lot currently so I hope to gain more knowledge that I can practice in real life. Anything goes, even for my personal style. I really like street-wear and breaking gender norms. But I’m just doing what feels cool to me, what makes me go out of my comfort zone.

On TikTok and in general, you wear makeup, dresses and skirts, or clothes that are “supposed” to be feminine according to society. What feedback have you gotten from these videos?

Honestly, it's overwhelmingly positive. I never really expected it to be as liked as they have been. And even when I go and watch the duets people make from those videos, it's 99% of the time appreciation. I really love how supportive people on TikTok have been towards me. But in real life, I don’t really notice the “big following” I have as much because most of my following is from America. In Bulgaria where I live, I don’t get recognized or anything, because it’s my fifth-largest following. I live the life of a normal person!

You have become a role model for many people, for young people who are sometimes afraid to dress however they want, because of gender norms. What did you come out with that was different from what you went in with in the beginning?

In the beginning, I didn't know what I was doing. But I feel like that's how it always goes with different social media apps or things you're trying out in general. I started in December of 2019, or maybe early January 2020. The content I was watching used to be very commentary-based, I was watching sketches or whatever. When I grew more into my style, my For You Page changed. It’s still commentary, but it’s more filled with people expressing themselves in all types of ways: fashion videos, people experimenting with makeup, or other things. And I feel like TikTok is a place where everyone can have a safe space for expression.

What does fashion mean to you?

I think fashion is just self-expression and drawing references or inspiration from other artists and things you can replicate or recreate or interpret in real life. So I guess I would say it's an expression of yourself. As I've gotten older, and more comfortable with myself, I allowed myself to experiment more with makeup and clothes, and do and wear whatever I want.

What are your thoughts on gender norms and masculinity?

Gender norms are honestly so stupid. I don’t like the fact that clothes, makeup, or anything define you or your gender. But even if it did, it's just something so irrelevant because people can present themselves however they want, and that shouldn't change your opinion in a negative way because of it. I think gender norms are just very ‘old-fashioned’ and I feel like nowadays, people are reconstructing them, making them their own, and just challenging what typically used to be considered either feminine or masculine. They’re mixing the two together and just creating what looks good and makes them feel good, regardless of the associated gender with that clothing.

And another thing is that ever since I was young, whenever I saw some guy or a girl wearing the ‘other gendered clothing’, I honestly felt like it accentuated their identity more, it somehow made men more masculine to me. Even with myself, whenever I wear a dress, I feel very masculine because of the contrast of what is usually associated with femininity or daintiness. I contrast it with more tough earrings or necklaces. The mixture of both is what I've always found very appealing.

You were talking about when you were young, and growing up. What do you think your younger self would say or think, looking at the version of you now?

Honestly, I feel like he would really appreciate the person that I am today. Because I've always been very true to myself. I've always allowed myself the freedom of being able to change whatever I want, like my appearance, or my opinions on certain things. I didn't always used to dress or think the way that I did, but I grew more confident, I grew into myself and into my character. I feel like that’s a thing my previous self would be very proud of.

Did you grow up in a household where your parents were totally okay with you exploring your identity?

Well, Bulgaria is an Eastern European country deeply rooted in homophobia and sexism. It’s really traditional, even if now it’s getting better. Fortunately for me, my parents weren’t. They never oppressed me. I used to be very much into drawing and painting back then and they let me express my art this way. And once it grew into photography, I started doing makeup. They’re not the most accepting which is okay, because I understand how they grew up and what they were taught. I still have some of their support and the freedom to express myself. My mom doesn’t like me wearing makeup or dressing feminine, but I still do it because I want to change her views someday, and maybe change other people’s opinions too. It shouldn’t be something that matters. Even if they were trying to make me dress more masculine, it never really affected me because I was always myself.

Is there any lesson you learned from all of this? From TikTok or from something else.

Just do it! Do whatever you're thinking of because honestly, you never know. I didn’t expect my videos to ever go viral. I just did it because it was like a last-minute idea, and it turned out that a lot of people liked it. So, if you ever find yourself overthinking, and just not being sure about what you're posting or what you're doing: it's never that serious. We should have fun on social media. So yeah, just do it. Like the Nike logo!

Is there something close to your heart, a special message you would like to share with the world?

I don't think I have any quote I can give on the spot. But going back to what I said about experimenting, and doing whatever feels right at the moment, I feel like that's most important. Because a lot of people, including myself, in the past have been scared or nervous to do things and nervous to fail. People just want to constantly succeed, but success is mostly up to interpretation. Even if you get fewer views on some videos, it doesn’t necessarily mean anything. You still learn from it, like all the mistakes or things you’re not as proud of. They can all be used in order to learn from it and make yourself better. So yes, I think you should just do whatever you feel is right. Experiment and challenge yourself, and go out of your comfort zone.