Men’s Fashion Week Fall-Winter 2023/2024 took place from January 17th to 22th, 2023. IFA Paris fashion school offers you to discover its’ top 10:
Tadao Ando’s White Cylinder – Bourse de Commerce
1 – Yves Saint Laurent‘s breathtaking show took place at the Bourse de Commerce in Paris, in the white cylinder designed by Japanese architect Tadao Ando. Every detail, every curve of the pieces of Anthony Vaccarello’s first men’s collection was precise and clean. One could not help but be mesmerized by the models, bathed in white light, draped in clothes like Greek statues.
Anthony Vaccarello explained to the press by showing the long coats of his collection for men, “It is an evolution of long dresses and knitwear” of the collection Spring-Summer 2023 revealed during a masterful fashioin show at the bottom of the Eiffel Tower last September. As well as its use of non-gendered cuts. “The man goes to women and the woman to men, there is no difference. Before, they were not at the same level, and I really want to put them there “.
DIOR
2 – Dior‘s A/W 2023-2024 Men’s show was rejuvenating. Kim Jones, artistic director of Dior Homme, drew from the archives to give us back a man anchored in the present and resolutely turned towards the future. Like the sailor suit from the Paris ensemble, imagined by Yves Saint Laurent for Dior’s 1958 Spring-Summer Haute Couture collection, which unfurled in cavalry twill and transformed into a long fisherman’s blouse. We rediscover shapes inspired by Yves Saint Laurent, who had abandoned the cinched waist of Dior. A dive into the past where the future reminds us of our present with 3D printed boots, marrying technology with the craftsmanship of the famous fashion house.
3 – Prada‘s two designers, Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons, presented a minimalist men’s collection that redefined the fundamentals of fashion. Their new creations revisited the classics of the men’s wardrobe, with touches of controlled colors. This season, the Italian house focused on elegance, with a minimalist suit that elongated the silhouette. XXL bomber jackets were also very trendy, with variations in several colors. The colors are applied sparingly on shirt collars and long coats, and worn in color block mode on pants, cardigans and suit jackets. Shoes were also in the spotlight, with new versions of colorful derbies and sneakers. But the accessory that caught all the attention was the leather tote bag in the shape of a giant flask, decorated with embossed patterns or declined in pastel tones. A potential it bag!
Louis-Gabriel Nouchi
4 – The fashion show of the LGN brand by young Parisian designer Louis-Gabriel Nouchi broke the codes with crushing red or black thigh-high boots, pairs of latex gloves, transparent silicon outfits and long wool coats. The collection, the result of a mix of virility and sensuality, paid homage to American writer Bret Easton Ellis’ novel, American Psycho. Since the brand’s inception in 2017, each collection has been a tribute to a book or writer that has “shaped his worldview.” Nouchi’s designs reflect his inclusive perspective on masculinity, focusing on stereotypes related to clothing. The designer plays with these ideas by creating sensual and fluid designs, often using light and soft materials that cover the body in a suggestive way. A vision that stands out on the fashion runways, few include models of different sizes and morphologies creating a surprising and very pleasant diversity in this environment usually so codified.
Rick Owens
5 – The show of the designer Rick Owens was opened by Tyrone Dylan, model and muse of the American designer, perched on platform boots. This first look, composed of flowing shorts and a black cape, set the tone for a collection inspired by the Victorian era to create a silhouette both elegant and modest. A characteristic of this era where sensuality was suppressed but in a very sophisticated way. Coats, skirts, parkas and voluminous shearlings were the key pieces in this collection that advocated simplicity.
This modesty was reflected in the use of recycled denim for skirts or jackets. A commitment to a more environmentally friendly fashion to which IFA Paris is sensitive.
6 – Charles Jeffrey Loverboy chose Milan to present his collection. A collection inspired by the work “The Slab Boys Trilogy”, by contemporary artist and playwright John Byrne, representing British subcultures and disruptive men of the 50s. There were fierce colors, strangeness, monochromatic looks, prints, fluidity, with a focus on workwear. This show was an exploration of identity through costume, characterized by highly thoughtful garments.
7 – London-based Chinese designer Feng Chen Wang returned to Paris to present her latest collection. Drawing inspiration from traditional Chinese practices to create designs that reflect the union of life’s beautiful moments, Wang used the Chinese custom of the “Hundred Family Dress”. Family, friends, neighbors would donate pieces of fabric that were then made into patchwork dresses with comforting patterns.
Fake fur was also present and was attached to coats, bags and hats that were made with scraps of fabric from the previous season. Chinese knots, the ancestors of buttons, linked costumes together and accessorized certain pieces. A tribute to Chinese culture and the union of communities that mixes traditional and modern influences.
Charaf Tajer
8 – Charaf Tajer, founder of the clothing brand Casablanca, presented his new collection at a fashion show in Paris, introducing his show with an impassioned speech about the inspiration for his collection. He told the story of Syrian friends who, despite the war, continued to party, considering it an act of courage and resistance. “This collection is a play, inspired by courage, which reflects the pain and beauty I witnessed in the war zone”.
Charaf Tajer delivered a collection with shimmering colors, both elegant and playful, mixing military symbols like the officer’s uniform with hearts or flowers, symbols of peace and happiness. Tajer wanted to create a better world. “It’s kind of like the people who were in the war but left it to join the party. So they keep their uniforms but only wear hearts, flowers and beauty as medals, as a way to reject the normal uniform.”
9 – Famous Belgian designer Dries Van Noten presented his latest collection during a fashion show in a parking lot in France. This collection highlighted the two sides of the designer, a romantic side that loves flowers and gardening and a more pointed and technical side of the tailor. The designer presented a brown English wool coat, very precisely cut with a cinched waist that evokes a masculine glamour of yesteryear. The collection is inspired by the rave culture of the 90s combined with the beauty of nature. Exotic and floral prints are a signature of the designer. The collection also includes more casual pieces such as faded linen pants, lace knit overlays, satin over size jogging suits or silky, shimmering teddy jackets.
Chitose Abe
10 – Chitose Abe, the most inspiring Japanese designer of the moment, had gathered the crowds to present the collection of her brand Sacai. Inspired by the movie Interstellar, direct references, such as the Murph library print and the Morse code/anomaly print, delighted fans. The dark colors of the first looks contrasted with the light and experimental nature of the next. The collaboration with Moncler was the highlight of the collection, combining piumino outerwear with suits and accessories to create modular pieces. The Sacai collection managed to perfectly merge the themes of hybridization and transformation with the world of Interstellar. This collection has something for everyone.
This Fall-Winter 2023/2024 Men’s Fashion Week was exciting and diverse. There is something for every taste and style. We can’t wait to discover the men’s collections for the spring summer 2024 season.