Review of Ludovic De Saint Sernin Spring 2024 Men’s Fashion Show
Sensual Paradise
By Mark Wittmer
While Ludovic de Saint Sernin’s eponymous label closed out Paris Men’s Spring 2024 with the coveted final slot, another, older designer’s name could be heard on the lips of fashion week insiders. One of the latest and most extreme examples of the ongoing creative director reshuffling craze, de Saint Sernin was named creative director of Ann Demeulemeester to much surprise and hype, but parted ways with the label after just one season, never getting a chance to deliver a follow up to the archive-focused debut. The appointment and subsequent un-appointment brought new eyes to the label, which was hugely influential in the 90s when its namesake founder was at the helm, and in turn charged the anticipation for whatever the next outing from LdSS’ own brand would be.
The designer rose to the challenge by delivering what feels like his most mature collection yet.
The trademark prurience is still there, but a new focus on purity of silhouette and an organic understanding of material emerges.
Previous collections forced a certain presentation and perception of the bare body; in this collection, the clothing responds to the bare body, the kind of dressing (or lack thereof) that might develop in a sensual paradise. Tailored shirts follow the curve of the hips. Deceptively simple dresses mirror the natural elegance of the transition from shoulders to bust. Boleros pay reverent homage to the male torso. No distinction between underwear and outerwear and little distinction between genders is made; there is only the surface of the body and what exists along it.
As the collection progresses, LdSS expands a bit and dips his toes back into more familiar products of industrialized sartorial society, like sleeveless denim jackets and leather bags with the designer’s signature eyelet lace-up construction. Still, these pieces feel both delicately considered and effortless, and lend nice grounding to the widely woven linens, barely there organzas, and fluid sequins.
Infusing name-making brand signatures with greater sophistication while confidently bringing his sensual vision to new design categories, Ludovic de Saint Sernin shows himself to be worthy of the hype, and at the head of the label where he belongs – his own.