New York – The event that has been the talk of the summer has finally begun. NYFW:
Men’s kicked off today, and the event quietly made history. The four day
event began with New York Men’s day with presentations at the 775
Washington Street building with collections from Cadet, Boyswear, CWST,
Garciavelez, David Hart, and Plac. While the runway shows don’t really
kickoff until tomorrow, as they were still setting up the stages at the
Skylight Clarkson Square, the presentations gave an excellent taste of
where men’s fashion is going in America.
Because this is the first standalone men’s fashion week and many designers
opted for presentations instead of full scale runway shows, NYFW: Men’s is
a bit less of a spectacle than it’s counterparts in London, Paris, and
Milan, but still impressive nevertheless. So far, most designers seem to be
going for the practical and the utilitarian. Cadet’s presentation was an
homage to the Paratroopers in the Demolition Section of the United States
Army dropped into France preceding the invasion of Normandy.
The collection included several military style jackets and a lot of army
green and grey. True to American fashion, it showed the values of
practicality in ready-to-wear. Boyswear showed us that sometimes American
men’s wear can get a little more exciting. For their collection, the brand
took a twist on “The Mansion Family Singers” and combined elements of
Tyrolean costume and, the hippie era of the 60s, and the costumes from “The
Sound of Music.”
It was proof that sometimes American men’s wear can be more bold than
people want to give it credit for. CWST, which is all about being
classically California, was a bit too understated and bland with a lot of
neutral colored offerings and no real standout pieces. Plac was also in the
camp of understated neutrals, but their collection had a bit of flare with
cuffed pants and a statement coat.
It’s proof that sometimes you just need that one standout piece and a few
details to create a noteworthy collection. It’s always in the details, as
they say. Both collections were a stark contract to Garciavelez who was all
about the neon colors and exploring the effects of light and their
distortions.
The collection was an homage to two major art installations. Dan Falvin’s
fluorescent installations and Donald Judd’s 100 untitled works in mill
aluminum. Perhaps thanks to Garciavelez, American men’s wear could begin to
find more room for color in their collections. However, if there was anyone
who was all about the color and proved that American men’s wear can compete
with their colorful Parisian and Italian counterparts, it is David Hart.
Hart’s presentation was inspired by Bauhaus and its artists during
inter-war period Germany. The textiles created by Annie Albers and Gunta
Stolzl were big inspirations for this collection, which resulted in color
palettes rooted in primary colors and hints of pastels, along with a lot of
geometric patterns. The bright colors and geometric almost gave us a small
taste of Italy, but, the silhouettes were true to American men’s wear
style, and the patterns were more conservative than the traditional Italian
luxury men’s wear brands would have them.
Many of the presentations today were so different, so, it was difficult to
get a full gauge for what the men’s wear market could be looking like for
spring/summer 2016 yet, but, there sure seems to be some great collections
on the way. NYFW: Men’s might have had a humble opening, but, today the
runway shows at the Skylight Clarkson Square kickoff, and that is sure to
amp up the entire event. Men’s day was a success at introducing the wonder
that is sure to be the rest of NYFW: Men’s.
photo 1: Cadet
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