What’s the point of fashion if it’s not fun? Despite mainstream fashion media kicking up a stink about quiet luxury, the avant-garde is very much alive among the biggest names at Paris and Milan men’s fashion weeks. From blown up proportions and chaotic color play to more outlandishly indescribable creations, today’s top designers remind us yet again that looking your best means looking the most like yourself – no matter what anyone may think.
The trend arrived hot on the heels of the previous season’s emphasis on quiet luxury, demonstrating that, though sensible sophistication may be worth investing in, personal expression will always be worth celebrating, and both designers and customers are still craving expressive fashion that sets its wearer apart from the pack.
This season’s non-conformists included Balmain, where Olivier Rousteing shook up the menswear formula by colliding classic tailoring with bold pop-art prints and colorways, as well as some beautiful experimental jewelry. Dior and JW Anderson resisted the return to rigid and defined gender roles that has resurged in fashion recently, using volume and embellishment to invite men to rethink their relationship with what is “feminine” in fashion. Doublet and Walter Van Beirendonck embraced eccentric humor, while Rick Owens characteristically pushed the envelope as he distorted sci-fi references to critique the alienating violence of our world.
