Men’s – Sailors and The Sea. Prada AW16

January 18, 2016January 18, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

Via Jeanne Damas Instagram

Even though the fashion world seems to be a happy place, Miuccia Prada makes a statement – it’s an industry, where everything is influenced by the world’s problems. The autumn-winter 2015 show is not only about new ideas and new bags – it delves much deeper. Curiosity about other people and about the world the designer lives in made this collection one of the most thoughtful Prada outings ever. “That is what is really interesting,” says she. “What people relate to, what fascinates them, how the fusion of fashion and culture makes people react.” Moreover, Miuccia has openly stated that she was thinking about the immigration, famine and a world-wide pessimism during the design process – and this explains the defining, sailor theme of this collection, which was frequently misinterpreted with Moby Dick’s tale. However, this time Prada takes it in a realistic way.

But a fashion show is about fashion, of course. The menswear part was mesmerizing, considering the clothes and the styling tricks. Most of the looks were topped off with a sailor cap and many of the opening men’s looks were focused on short-sleeved button-up shirts printed with retro-inspired imagery. Deconstructed shirting, printed with Christophe Chemin‘s surreal illustrations, appeared in various forms, like extra packets on tops and additional collars worn over coats. In overall, the men’s wardrobe had a survivor-like manner, noting the bare torsos and unbottoned shirts the models wore, If talking of the womenswear part, Prada delivered beautiful silhouettes for her pre-fall 2016 – the designer’s models like (Natalie Westling, Lineisy Montero and Mica Arganaraz) moved down the runway in woolen tights, ginger leather coats and sleek, midi-lenght dresses. The classy, velvet pumps worn with socks looked, as usual, unfailing. Summing up, the collection was like a storm among the pretty and calm menswear collections in Milan.

Men’s – Gentler, Masculine Side. No21 AW16

January 18, 2016August 5, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

Sunday 17th was a really good day for Alessandro Dell‘AcQua – in the morning, he presented his autumn-winter 2016 collection for men; in the evening, he was at the opening inauguration of N21‘s first, Milanese flagship store, where the industry’s most influential people appeared. The store, located on Via Santo Spirito, perfectly captures Alessandro’s vision at N21 – definitely, the new menswear collection will look good on the hangers next season, too. If talking of the clothes, the designer played with layers and textiles, introducing unexpected, gentle combination of chiffon, macramé lace, crepe de chine and animalier prints. The collection had a signature, laid-back (even grunge!) coolness about it, with those over-sized pockets on khaki hoodies and leopard-print coats. But what truly stole my heart in N21’s winter outing was the shearling story – styled with satin varsity jackets and burgundy polo shirts underneath, they felt slightly decadent and masculine simultaneously. Without much effort, Dell’AcQua knows how to make a guy covet his clothes.

Men’s – Back to Black. Bottega Veneta AW16

January 18, 2016January 18, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

Tomas Maier, the creative director of Bottega Veneta, takes his man (and woman) to the darker side this season. But the colour of black had its function – Maier made it the leading colour of the show in order to present a contrast. “It’s about the silhouette. I felt it needed change. All the sportswear-inspired elements that we have been putting in: It’s time to move on. It’s becoming a trend, lots of people are doing that, I don’t need to do it forever.” Rather than reintepreting de luxe sweatpants, the collection was focused on the way the athletic, yet elegant clothes look on the body of both men and women. For guys, Bottega Veneta channeled a loose-fit chic, while girls looked soigné in their calfskin coats and relaxed skirts. Even though this collection is not a ground-breaking one, it feels like one of the best menswear outings by the designer up to date.

Men’s – Future Vamps. JW Anderson AW16

January 11, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

Jonathan Anderson takes his brand, and his creative vision, to a totally undiscovered and widely misunderstood field. You can love it, hate it, ignore it or praise it – but still, J.W. Anderson is the most absorbing brand coming from London. The city buzzed about the menswear show for autumn-winter 2016 season a long time before the show-day – it was reported that the brand will live-stream the fashion show on a dating-app, Grindr, presenting the show within a few seconds to about seven million people. Just like that. Without much effort.

Maybe the PR of Anderson are genius – but surely, the brand knows how to excite in the media sphere. However, streaming the collection on a dating app is not such a strange idea. The codes of the brand are focused on “future”, and “perversity” – somehow, a dating app is all about sex and modern way of life, right? And the collection for men definitely didn’t lack any of those. The looks, which fused the everyday basics, like a chunky cardigan or a simple, British mackintosh coat, had something modernistic about them – new, over-sized silhouettes, high-tech fabrics (take a look at this transparent, organza-like piece, printed with a dog called Bonzo from the 20s) and the seriously ugly planet-Zenon trainers with pastel-pink toe. But still, these techno vamps had something to do with a perverse, clubbing manner – the models’ hair, which was held back, looked dirty from a hard night out. Some wore perspex chokers, modestly ornamented with silver studs – and some had those cheesy hoop ball earrings on. To make even more extraordinary, one look was focused on a camel coat, worn over a naked body, and a pair of, again, Zenon shoes.

But looking back at the animals in the collection – everybody noticed the turquoise snails, which were lazily stuck to a rabbit-fur jacket and a white pea-coat. Was Jonathan trying to convey a message? SLOW DOWN? The frustration of fashion’s speed, which made Alber and Raf say “bye” to Lanvin and Dior, is a struggle for most of young designers, as they need to be creative for 24/7, do their best to afford pre-collections and have a perfect, on-time stock for the retailers. Or maybe, Anderson ironically said “catch me if you can” to all the others in the industry? This guy is a real propeller of ideas, so why not show it off in the most bright and bold aspect of the collection?

Men’s – Contemporary Uniform. Casely Hayford AW16

January 10, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

If talking of London’s menswear brands, Casely Hayford is the closest to my heart, style and wardrobe. I just love how this fashion-family duo, Charlie and Joe, reconstruct daily basics into something exciting and beautiful. The best example is the MA1 inspired parka above. Definitely, this piece totally changes the meaning of a jacket / coat – it’s both functional and mind-blowing with its elongated silhouette and the “unfinished” manner. Masterfully styled with these sleek, burgundy pants and a simple black top, this look might be called the contemporary uniform. Just like most of the collection – see the patched-work denim, psychedelic prints on casual suits and uber-cool sweat-shirts. To give a military swing to the collection, Casely Hayford nailed two looks with an ornamented, officer collar – a bold detail which makes this collection blur the everyday clothes with something much more bold and unexpected.