The Omicron variant has had a major impact on the AW22 menswear shows hosted in Milan and Paris over the past couple of weeks. Still, many designers persevered and presented their collections — both physically and digitally. Below we present our 4 favourite shows from Paris and Milan fashion weeks.
1. Louis Vuitton
During his eight collection residency, Virgil Abloh turned the house of Louis Vuitton upside down and inside out; he made the exclusive inclusive. Louis Vuitton’s recent presentation in Paris marked the final piece of that arc.
The show, named “Louis Dreamhouse” embodied a lot of the themes and messages at the heart of Abloh’s work as creative director of the luxury band. Surreal and childlike, it was all about imagination. Virgil believed we should see the world through the wide eyes of a child to whom anything seems possible; he often said that he did everything for his 17-year-old self.
The surrealist set was inspired by the Wizard of Oz – much like Abloh’s first show – and on the runway, we bore witness to clothing that transcended categorisation as tailoring was mixed with sportswear, and streetwear mixed with bridal wear.
Themes of spirituality and transience were evident as models appeared in fairy wings, made from delicate lace, which became progressively bigger as the show went on. This spoke for itself.
The team effort was spearheaded by Ib Kamara, a Sierra Leone-born multidisciplinary creative and editor-in-chief of the fashion publication Dazed. His high-profile styling gigs have included Fenty ads for Rihanna and numerous international Vogue covers.
Kamara began collaborating with Abloh ahead of Louis Vuitton’s Spring-Summer 2021 collection. Since then, he has styled Louis Vuitton campaigns and menswear runway shows — including the SS22 show ‘Virgil was Here’ held in Miami directly after Virgil’s passing.
Tyler, the Creator composed the magical soundtrack that was performed by the Chineke! Orchestra.
Check out the full 20-minute show below.
2. A-COLD-WALL*
Samuel Ross debuted the AW22 collection for A-COLD-WALL* with an atmospheric film shot in the grand halls of the Tate Modern in line with the Milan Fashion Week schedule.
Ross, age 30, is a black British designer and protégé of the late Virgil Abloh. He is the recipient of the 2018 British Fashion Award for Emerging Menswear Designer, the 2019 Hublot Design Prize, Forbes 30 under 30 Europe, the 2020 GQ USA Fashion Award and the 2020 People of the Year British Fashion Award for his philanthropic endeavours.
With his brand, A-COLD-WALL*, Ross has collaborated with Nike, Converse, Dr Martens, Mackintosh and Diesel’s Red Tag.
During the pandemic, the designer made a decision to split his brand into 2 strands: ACW and A-COLD-WALL*. The former has a slightly more commercial focus and has largely been what Ross has been focused on over the past couple of years. The latter adopts a fashion-as-art, more conceptual perspective, which is ultimately how the brand began in 2015.
This collection, titled “Brittle. Render. Sequenced. Thought.”, marks the first time since the distinction was made that Ross is presenting A-COLD-WALL* on its own.
Reverting to a more experimental and creative approach, the collection presents fashion as a means to evoke an emotive response, where clothes are treated as canvases rather than as products intended to be purchased and worn.
In an interview with ID, Ross stated:
“What I’m proposing is that when A-Cold-Wall* shows runway, we should be showing ideas and perspectives, not just product… With this collection, I wasn’t thinking about how we could make the best cargo pant or the best blouson — I was thinking about what feelings I wanted to convey, and how shape and form helped contextualise those feelings.”
Feast your eyes on the runway film below and visit Hypebeast to check out the full collection.
3. Bianca Saunders
London-born designer Bianca Saunders (28 years old) made her Paris Fashion Week debut with her AW22 menswear collection, named “Stretch”.
The debut was preceded by a busy 2021, in which the designer was shortlisted for the LVMH Prize and BFC/GQ Designer Menswear Fund. She also became the first Black woman to win the prestigious ANDAM award — previously won by designers such as Martin Margiela, Anthony Vaccarello, Iris Van Herpen and Marine Serre.
Speaking on Saunders’ work, Damien Paul, Head of Menswear at Matchesfashion said:
“Her elevated edge to menswear design plays with proportions of garments, extending, accentuating and twisting traditional silhouettes to bring a new form to what would otherwise be considered a classic menswear piece,”
The AW22 collection experiments with cutting techniques to create abstract coats and jackets that defy conventional silhouettes. This experimental take on production is also implemented on denim and tailored trousers, which are cut as if everything has been shifted to the right, taking front design elements into the back and side of the trousers.
In a release, Saunders said of the designs:
“I want the collection to be timeless – it could be now, it could be the past, it could be the future. I’ve tried to make my brand not representative of one type of person. I want people to always see a part of themselves in it.”
Check out the full collection here and check out the accompanying video presentation down below.
4. Prada
Hollywood heavyweights Jeff Goldblum and Kyle MacLachlan made surprise appearances at men’s fashion week in Milan, with both walking the runway for Prada.
A new generation of actors like Sex Education star Asa Butterfield, The Queen’s Gambit’s Thomas Brodie-Sangster, the award-winning Moonlight actor Ashton Sanders and Jaden Michael, star of Netflix series Colin in Black and White, were also cast in the show, which offered a futuristic vision of workplace attire.
The cameos gave a celebratory end to Milan fashion week, which saw several labels (including Armani and Gucci) cancel their live presentations amid a surge in Covid-19 cases across Europe. But still, Prada went ahead with its show at the Fondazione Prada complex, sending models down a sci-fi-inspired tunnel dimly lit with blue and purple lighting.
62-year-old Kyle MacLachlan (star of Twin Peaks and Sex and the City) opened the show rocking a long black coat with light blue satin trousers, shirt and matching gloves. He thanked Raf Simons (Prada’s co-creative director) on Twitter, calling the opportunity to open the show an honour.
69-year-old Jeff Goldblum — a known fan of Prada — closed the show in an all-black outfit that included a dark overcoat with mohair trim and sleeves.
Speaking on their decision to cast actors as models for the show, Prada said:
“Actors are interpreters of reality, employed to echo truth through their portrayals… Real men, recognised figures, they bring a new facet of reality.”
For a long time, Prada has been very much at the forefront of fashion, not just for the clothes they produce but also in the way they tell a story. Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons are two of the most forward-thinking contemporary fashion designers, so while it’s not a surprise to see them leading the way with more mature men on the catwalk, it is certainly welcome.
Watch Prada’s full presentation down below.
