Suiting up was once the classic standard for gentleman, but now it’s all about sporting up. The five women of Amsterdam-based Reconstruct Collective found the fusion between avant-grade and sportswear for their spring/summer 2019 collection, creating a sporty collection very much for the new age.
The opening look included two models walking hand-in-hand in a black Siamese twin shirt, black shorts, sneakers, and glitter sunglasses. The theme of the collection was retrograde orbit, and this look was something from another world almost, as it was based on a fictional planet the designers imagined called Planet Re-4. Technical details were all key here.
The designers reconstructed sporty pieces, like tank tops that were decorated with the Re-4 logo, and nylon pants were bedazzled with extra drawstrings. Nylon panels were fused on wide leg pants for a futuristic effect and cropped hoodies were deconstructed to be reconstructed giving a type of “Mad Max” and “Star Wars” effect. Waistbands also featured the Reconstruct logo, tapping into the trend of logo embellishment.
It was very difficult to know what to expect next, but the overall collection was cohesive. The sense of neo-futurism permeated throughout the collection with shiny grey fabric choices, reminiscent of space suits. Though the silhouettes were non-traditional, the designers used the unfamiliar silhouettes as truly an exercise in where they could go next. While the color palette included grey, silver, blue, there were additional color palettes that included pink, blue, and orange, with the orange garments being reminiscent of NASA astronaut suits.
On trend and in the spirit of futurism, many of the designs looked genderless. While the idea of genderless fashion is just in its infancy, reconstructed nylon jackets, wide leg trousers, and space age outerwear spoke to gender fluidity. On Planet Re-4 it is all just clothes.
Images courtesy of Dan Ashby/Firstview
To the cheers of the crowd, Reconstruct’s New York Fashion Week: Men’s debut proved to be a success. This was far from a typical fashion show, but a refreshing turn in a new direction for something that hadn’t been seen before at NYFWM. Where will the collective take us next?—Kristopher Fraser
Head of State designer Taofeek Abijako’s latest collection for his brand was inspired by Afro-futurism that is influenced by 70s funk band Parliament, the American funk music collective of rotating musicians headed by George Clinton, and Sun Ra, the American jazz composer. Abijako also added elements of West African youth culture thrown in for good measure.
Atten-hut! Wood House Army is on the scene, and they demand your attention!
A year later, Julian and his husband/muse/creative partner Kirill Kabachenko showed their fall 2016 collection at Pier 59 Studios in NYC. This season, showing their eighth collection, the duo demonstrates strong design growth. But they also show a noticeably strong sense of self by not veering too far from their established brand aesthetic, but instead offer customers another layer of Asian-inspired design.
Feng Chen Wang’s men’s spring 2019 is an editors and stylist’s dream. For the most part, the men’s spring 2019 collections were lackluster, with so many brands attempting to stay relevant by presenting collections that were extremely consumer friendly with very little panache and charm.
This other half reference was made evident in garments that exposed half of a shoulder or half of the body. This was particularly effective in shirts and outerwear.
These designs are accompanied by some new additions to Wang’s oeuvre, such as suits and shirts, in addition to new outerwear styles, such as trench coats and tee shirts with panel details. Bags and jewelry take the form of hands, some holding hands—a universal signifier of connection—while a sculpture constructed from multiple hands stands erect in the center of the show space. Spring 2019 also sees the introduction of the Feng Chen Wang women.
The devil is in the details, or in this case the divinity is in the details. For his spring/summer 2019 collection, Ricardo Seco looked to his home country of Mexico for inspiration, as he traditionally has, but this time he dug a little deeper than obvious Mexican references. The 1968 Summer Olympics was the source of inspiration for Seco’s spring 2019 men’s collection evidenced by the shorts and bright-patterned leggings which conjured up images of color themes and design aesthetics of the `68 Summer Olympics.
Architect Pedro Ramirez Vásquez who brought together Eduardo Terrazas of New York, Pratt Institute grad Lance Wyman, and Peter Murdoch drew inspiration from Mexico’s indigenous Huichol thread craft culture to create the images and designs of the 1968 Olympics, bridging the gap between traditional and modern Mexico. The indigenous Huichol culture would be the inspiration for Seco’s 2015 Dreams collection, from which this spring 2019 collection was also built.
In his spring 2019 collection, David Hart proves that everything old is new again. Looking to the menswear from the early 1970s, David Hart created a collection that was heavily influenced by that era of men’s fashion seen through a modern lens of what would appeal to American male consumers.
Hart, has always been known for his suiting with many of his collections being inspired by references to great men’s suiting styles of the 20th Century—the Miami nightlife scene of the late 50s, the Havana 60s nightclub scene, and the 50s Beatnik scene which was influenced by French new wave cinema. That said; this current alternative European menswear scene with a concentration on softer tailoring fits perfectly into Hart’s design point of view.
Nick Graham always puts on a good show. Whether it is a runway show that pays homage to tropical birds, hot Havana nights, Apollo 13 or a host of other reference points, Nick Graham every season finds a way to show his signature sporty suits in the best light, as well as entertain the audience.
Nick Graham has stayed true to his American customer and his niche of sporty men’s suits. He has always stayed loyal to NYFWM. Still, Graham recognizes that his penchant for great sports suiting is not enough, particularly, for younger male consumers. And he did something about that this season.
Graham gave references to astronauts, hippy flower children as expressed in his Woodstock reference, and laid-back, late 1960s Los Angeles style. And true to form, Nick Graham made all these 1969 references somehow work for his design aesthetic.
DYNE creative director Christopher Bevans looked to the future and the rugged terrain of the Pacific Northwest for inspiration for his spring 2019 collection. “Paying homage to the beautiful yet rugged landscapes of the Pacific Northwest, DYNE’s connection is not only to the modern technological world but also to the natural world in which we all must coexist,” said Creative Director Christopher Bevans.
Unlike some previous collections, with the right marketing, this spring 2019 collection could appeal to a much wider demographic. And though this collection is solidly placed in the Generation X and millennial market, there were some pieces in this collection that could appeal to male consumers that are a bit older; particularly several outerwear garments.
DNA is the building blocks of our genetic makeup. The fundamental element of who we become. For spring 2019, Carlos Campos returned to his brand DNA to display the growth and strength of his eponymous line.
For this season, Campos stuck with a rigid, yet vibrant, four-color scheme of cream, Amarillo yellow, pale sienna, and deep navy blue. Building from his fall 2018 collection, Campos exercised his design expertise by emphasizing geometric color blocking accented by stripes and piping details. He also stayed within a narrow range of fabrications, opting to focus on sateen woven shirts and gabardine wool coats and trousers.
Looking back to previous decades as inspiration for new fashion collections is common practice for fashion brands/designers/creative directors. A few years back punk fashion was all the rage and no brand did it better that year than Versace. (Though it was an updated look at punk seen through the lens of sensuality and hot lava passion.) And last season it was all about a revitalized look at 1980s street style. We are talking about an updated look at tracksuits, classic high top sneakers, and round-the-way girl glam. Virgil Abloh of Off White set the standard for this 80s glance back.
Missoni in their men’s spring 2019 conjured up images or motor cross racing across cultures as was evidenced in 1979 Paris-Dakar rally were competitors raced across the European land mass and the North African and West African cultures. This season’s color palettes move from verdant fields to golden deserts as reflections of alternating landscapes and memories, while the overall collection reveals a worn and weathered patina. And we all know no one mixes color palettes better than Missioni.
Layered silhouettes reflect a contrast of extreme proportions and an amalgamation of the Missoni Man’s transformative journey. Softly tailored double-breasted suits in lightweight loom-knit fabrics give way to slightly more disheveled, put-together looks that take on a more ethnic vibe and styling; mixing and matching elongated intimo pieces with oversized shawl-collar cardigans, polos and V-necks, field jackets and nylon pullovers, cutaway collar or pajama shirts and relaxed linen trousers or cargo shorts.
