HUNGER’s Men’s Paris Fashion Week round up
Menswear proved to be in reinvigorated form as Paris Fashion Week ended on June 26 with spectacle, innovation and the return of big-name designers to the catwalk. The event hosted a jam-packed schedule, spanning local heavyweights – Dior, Givenchy and Louis Vuitton among them – and a new generation of talent redefining the city.
Unfortunately, the 10 day show is now over, but thankfully we have HUNGER photographer Kevin Pineda (@kevin_pineda_) to give us backstage access to the shows. . Pineda was present to capture a number of stunning presentations throughout his stay in Paris, including Ungaro, Gravalot and Bass Couture. See all the images below.
Loewe
Plants sprouting from sodden garments were combined with digital screens displaying imagery of birds decorated across models’ bodies for Spanish fashion brand Loewe’s Spring Summer 2023 menswear show. The collection, which was designed by the brand’s creative director Jonathan Anderson, was created as an amalgamation of nature and technology and a “fusion of the organic and fabricated”, said the fashion brand.
Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton menswear will always be associated with Virgil Abloh. The house has continued to honour him since his tragic passing in November of 2021. The latest remembrance took place in the form of a raucous marching band dominating the runway, before giving way to a more subdued performance from Kendrick Lamar. Wearing a crown of thorns designed by Tiffany & Co., the rapper remained seated on the front row while performing tracks off of his latest album, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers, and repeating the mantra “Long live Virgil.” It was a poignant tribute in what was Abloh’s final collection for the brand.The collection itself was playful, exuberant and filled with colour. Moto jackets took on tipsy-topsy curves, coats featured bold, crocheted Louis Vuitton motifs and colourful, charm-like accessories swayed off trousers and belts.
Hermes
Harnessing the vacation spirit, Hermés men’s Spring-Summer 2023 runway show offered lightness and simplicity in the form of relaxed shorts and trousers crafted from lightweight fabrics and boxy button-downs featuring seahorse and crayfish prints. Showcased in the open-air enclosure of the Manufacture des Gobelins, the collection’s lilac accents, laid-back sophistication and neoprene sandals exuded the most fashionable version of nonchalance and summer relaxation.
KidSuper
A runway-auction hybrid, KidSuper Studios’ 2023 menswear show was unlike any other at this year’s Paris Men’s Fashion Week. Inspired by Colm Dillane’s paintings, the collection was auctioned off by a Christie’s auctioneer during the show, under the tongue-in-cheek title of Superby’s. Filled with colour, the collection brought Dillane’s paintings to life in the form of boxy blazers, relaxed trousers, woollen sweaters and tote bags.
Dior Men
Dior menswear artistic director Kim Jones set up the runway in a makeshift space in central Paris for the show during Men’s Fashion Week. The catwalk was transformed into a lawn of purple, orange, and pink flowers, with a blue-sky painted panorama and a life-size reproduction of Christian Dior’s pink house in Normandy.
Extending on from Dior’s winter collection, this 52-look Spring-Summer menswear collection celebrates artist Duncan Grant’s and Christian Dior’s respective homes, by paying homage to the two creatives’ gardens in the form of pinks, pastels, blues and a seaside garden backdrop. Featuring reclaimed cashmere, walking shoes, trench coats and shorts with turned-down waistbands, the collection combines everyday luxe with a utilitarian sensibility.
Givenchy
A giant font filled with milky-white water and frothing mist in the courtyard of the Ecole Militaire served as a fluid runway where models, often bare-chested and in waterproof footwear, stomped and splashed toward a blinding set light. Williams’ vision was urban, sports-infused and pared down. The American designer, the former collaborator of Lady Gaga and Kanye West, brought his streetwear vibe to the haute Paris runway. The muse this season was the style of Jamaican Reggae singer, Alkaline, who worked on the show’s soundtrack. Williams has taken heavy inspiration from the musical world especially when it comes to hip-hop stars such as Playboi Carti and Lancey Foux which have bled into the more relaxed, streetstyle Williams shows off here.
Rick Owens
Rick Owens’ latest collection began with a recent trip to Egypt. “I found great comfort in the remoteness and scale of its history,” said the designer. “My personal concerns and discomforts felt petty in the face of that kind of timelessness.” He titled it ‘Edfu’, after an Egyptian temple, here presented in a dramatic manner befitting the inspiration, and it saw guests gather around the grand deco forecourt of the Palais de Tokyo. In its central pool was a crane; and as the show went on, a gathering of technicians clipped on vast spheres that were then set alight, raised up, and once burning dropped from on high into the water.
“A blazing sun crosses the sky, falling to the ground over and over again… senseless destruction since the beginning of time,” said the designer. Amid this apocalyptic scene, Owens proposed clothing defined by “order and discipline”: sharp-lined tailoring, narrow belts and skin tight tops.
