Men's Fashion Week Paris: an exotic, sporty and feminine spring/summer 2016
Men's fashion week in Paris came to a close on June 28 with the Saint Laurent show, an affair that presented a very rock n' roll collection clearly reminiscent of the late Kurt Cobain's iconic style. Several trends came to light through these Parisian shows, which strongly emphasized prints and exotic colors -- with an ever present theme of travel and adventure -- but also sporty cuts, the whole peppered by rather feminine touches.
The traveling adventurer
Men are headed for adventure come spring/summer 2016, with jumpsuits, baggy pants and backpack in the spotlight. A very present theme throughout these shows, travel is an essential part of the male silhouette. Louis Vuitton takes man across the globe, especially to Asia, with plant and animal prints, but also with camouflage vests worn with sunglasses and large backbacks.
For its part, Issey Miyake drew inspiration from Tokyo and Mexico City, with a return to nature marked by a strong presence of animal prints, especially birds, generally yellow on blue, though sometimes green on white, practically resembling foliage. This trend was accentuated by jumpsuits in both short and long form, always baggy, and a bright palette ranging from bright yellow to turquoise, by way of pink, green, red and purple.
Balmain also delved into the adventurous spirit, though keeping it chic, with a collection of hats, Bermuda shorts and backpacks, all in sober colors dominated by beiges and blacks.
With the help of this travel theme, the Parisian shows emphasized exoticism, especially with regard to prints and colors; Louis Vuitton stood out with an abundance of tropical patterns, in pink, blue or grey shades. This trend was also picked up on by Issey Miyake, with yellow or green parrots, as well as by Dries Van Noten, which used many exotic patterns as accents.
Urban chic sportswear the order of the day
Another trend hitting the Parisian scene was sportswear, which this year takes the form of loose and flowing pieces as well as including such obvious elements as the bomber jacket, seen over and over again on the capital's catwalks. But for spring/summer 2016, sportswear will be paired with a sophisticated wardrobe, sometimes bourgeois, as with Dior, and not in a head-to-toe look.
3.1 Philip Lim kicked things off, presenting a flowing, light and refined collection with a few touches borrowed from sportswear, such as the quilted jacket, the parka or the bomber. Givenchy also gave its men's collection a sporty feel, both in terms of fabrics and cuts.
Sporty touches were even present at the Marilyn Monroe-inspired Dries Van Noten show, where patterns could be found on pieces taken straight from the sports world, especially the varsity jackets.
Christian Dior also presented variations of this theme, though paired with much more refined and classic pieces: there were bomber jackets, embroidered for the occasion with white roses, but also camouflage prints and lots of zippers.
A masculine wardrobe with a hint of the feminine
Man is becoming a bit more feminine for spring/summer 2016. This trend, already picked up on in London and Milan, was confirmed in Paris by skirts, scarves and prints normally reserved for women.
There were many staples of the feminine wardrobe parading down the Parisian runways, starting with Rynshu, for whom the androgynous silhouette is the norm, but also with Hermès, whose collection was filled with floral prints and square scarves tied around the neck.
This trend was less noticeable, though still present, at the Rick Owens show, where the models had their faces covered by an enormous mass of hair.
