Alessandro Dell’Acqua of No.21 brought his womenswear classics to men, making the boys for summer romantic and sweet. Lace was worked for slim pants and shirts, tops and short pants in lightweight gingham fabrics were cut in fluid silhouettes and suits came in sorbet colors. These contrasted with the contemporary, skater-inspired feel of printed T-shirts and Neoprene color-blocked sweatshirts embossed with the No. 21 logo. This is the modern Milanese guy.
This look above is the outfit that killed all the others for SS15. Clement Chabernaud wears a over-sized, striped pajama like shirt, paint marked boyfriend jeans and the classical, Gucci loafers. What to need more for summer? This gorgeous collection delivered by Frida Gianini for us yesterday is one of the best Gucci men ever had! Ticking all the nautical boxes and yet deftly managing to rise above costume party clichés, the tailoring-led collection featured boating jackets – contrast piping adorning collars and sleeves – gold anchor-stamped buttons and pristine white ankle grazers. Bravo!
Beige. Beige. Beige. And then a little drop of yellow; little splash of red; and the whole red / yellow / orange PVC sweatshirts appeared. That was possibly the most dynamic change of action during the whole Milan Men Fashion Week! Calvin Klein summer was a sportish collection full of casual shorts, trousers (I love the cuts) and tank tops, that went through reincarnation of their colour. “Transparency is very important to move ahead with straightforwardness and simplicity” said Italo Zucchelli, the designer. I just want to add it reminded me of Miu Miu for AW14 (these vinyl!)…
Bruce Chatwin spent much of his early career specialising in the work of the impressionists – think Cézanne, Degas and Monet – at Sotheby’s. It’s always a delight when Bailey himself turns to art for his references (think back to his Hockney inspired SS14 menswear collection, or his homage to the Bloomsbury Group for AW14 womenswear). The early Parisian impressionists were pioneers of elevating ordinary subject matters through the interplay of light, brushstrokes and composition. It’s much like what Bailey achieved today. The collection was covetable, buzzing with an infectious youthful energy yet routed in something far deeper. Christopher Bailey makes Burberry a fashion house which is very open for Bristish art legacy. And that’s really good because the men collection by Burberry are again exciting and interesting! For SS15, I enjoyed most the radiant colours which are perfect for long, Summer evenings. The accessories were also here the key- the leather, printed clutches with smart texts written on; colourful sneakers; the funny Woody Allen like hats… surely that’s one of the best Burberry collections ever!
Jonathan Anderson is the strange man in London fashion scene. And this menswear collection proves the point. Scarcely a promising scenario for a collection of mens-wear, but gender blurring has always been an Anderson trait, and here it yielded clothes whose softness and languor were—what else?—oddly appealing, especially in the bias-cut tops that slipped off the shoulder or the hip into loose scarf-ties. “Sleepy eroticism” was the impression he wanted to convey. The collection was one of the disturbingly hyper-normal. Why? Just see the first three looks. Cap-sleeve tops patterned after the work of octogenarian carpet designer John Allen, which were items of bucolic loveliness. True to character, Anderson felt compelled to point out the dropped pockets, which made the models stretch their arms. “A bit creepy,” he mused. “It feels normal, but it’s not.” I myself wouldn’t wear any of these clothes. But after all, I feel that Anderson makes fashion fashion, and not just something to be sold on-line (although his new web-site is amazing). More on http://j-w-anderson.com
Design & Culture by Ed 