Could this be the idea of the imminent return to feverish festival weekends? Or the physical joy of being able to vibrate again while standing during a concert, as will be authorized in France from June 30? In any case, the creators of the Paris Men’s Fashion Week, which took place from June 22 to 27, seemed sensitive to the virtues of music.
After the drum and bass celebrated at Louis Vuitton or the trance of rave parties in the spotlight at Burberry, Kim Jones, at Dior, king of shock collaborations, is trying his hand at a line entirely thought out with a musician for the first time. And not just any: Travis Scott. With 41 million subscribers on Instagram, the American rapper is, at 29, one of the most influential personalities of the moment, especially with the famous generation Z. Hordes of young fans awaited him, smartphone in hand , at the end of the parade which brought together 495 guests at the foot of the Invalides.
“I have thought a lot about the young generation this year, who have suffered from successive confinements. This concerns Travis as well. His foundation, Cactus Jack, raises funds to finance fashion students, in partnership with Parsons School. The profits from this collection will also be dedicated to this ”, explains Kim Jones, the day before the parade, at the headquarters of the Parisian house.
On the catwalk, the cloakroom is elegant but relaxed. The models, sneakers on their feet, wear fitted suits with the lapels attached by a shiny brooch, wide blouses, short zipped jackets or knitted pieces in distinct colors. “The look is inspired by that of Travis, by the references he grew up with, like the image of Jimi Hendrix with his flared pants. It’s exciting to see a fresh look at the Dior heritage ”, details Kim Jones.
The rapper was not afraid to confront historical codes to better shake them up. The Saddle bag sees double, the Dior logo is transformed, while a necklace imagined with Victoire de Castellane, in charge of the brand’s jewelry, takes the shape of a cactus, a nod to its native Texas. Artist George Condo also signs prints on a series of shirts. The soundtrack of the parade unveiled exclusive tracks from the rapper, to the delight of his fans.
It is also a question of the sacrificed youth at Loewe. Jonathan Anderson offers a wardrobe tribute to the culture of clubbing, when music makes you lose your senses. “This collection is dedicated to everything we couldn’t do this year”, explains the designer. The video, shot in Marseille, then takes on the appearance of a rave party, the neon colors dress up transparent blouses, shorts or laced boots. Shiny sequins enhance t-shirts while the mesh is airy, for easy movement. An ideal wardrobe to celebrate with panache the reopening of nightclubs on July 9.
It is in the solar energy of Volta Jazz, a Burkinabé group of the 1970s, that Grace Wales bonner found his inspiration. The Londoner, also nourished by the work of photographer Sanlé Sory, whose photos immortalized the Volta Jazz in concert, offers suits for elegant jazzmen, mohair knits, flowing striped shirts, enhanced with artisanal details: jacquards or hand-woven cottons. in Burkina Faso.
In The mayor, Christophe Lemaire and Sarah-Linh Tran continue their introspection of the ideal wardrobe. Soft materials, a sober color palette and collaborations with artists: the delicate landscapes of the American painter Joseph Yoakum invite themselves on loose blouses or fleece skirts, while a series of T-shirts are inspired by the graphic design of the cover from the last album of the English group Tomaga. “Valentina, the group’s drummer, made the soundtrack for the last show. She is an incredible performer. We wanted to show here the brand’s taste for music ”, explains Sarah-Linh Tran.
“As I built the collection, a hedonistic festival look came through”, says Thomas Monet who launched in 2019 Cool TM, which brings together couture techniques and a grunge spirit. On the festival side, are we more like old Woodstock or contemporary Coachella? A bit of both, as this former Balmain mixes new and vintage, combining an imperial yellow tweed jacket with neon jogging bottoms or logoed hoodies.
In Courrèges, for his first foray into the men’s wardrobe, Nicolas Di Felice turned to the archives, to extract a modernized, pop and popular version, alternating small bombers, references to workwear, effective denim or mesh. The concerts, or rather their absence this year, also inspired him. “I love outdoor festivals, their energy, I’ve done a lot! As I missed it a lot, I imagined eco-responsible nylon parkas and overcoats, a bit like the ones we have in mind when we think of English festivals, with rain and mud. “
In Rick owens, it’s sand that the models’ feet trample on, at the edge of the waves: that of the Lido beach in Venice, in a powerful video to the tempo of dubstep (electronic music from London). If we find of course some traces of the black dear to Rick Owens, his shaman boys follow one another especially wrapped in a virginal white, which runs from the slip-on sneakers and wedge shoes, goes up on the zip pants before winning the sci-fi hero architectural vests or archangel-style jackets with pointed shoulders. A feather top crowns the whole thing, developed with Maison February, the essential supplier of Joséphine Baker.
In a completely different genre, here is Mylène Farmer who joins the French duo EgonLab. And this, literally: the words of Disenchanted, the song of the singer who will be sworn from July 6 at the Cannes Film Festival, cover a mesh top in gothic font. “We wanted a collection that could make people want to move forward while remaining united and put behind us the collective trauma of the pandemic. So, of course, this song, whose chorus begins with “Everything is chaos” and ended up claiming a bright future seemed indicated to us ”, tell Florentin Glémarec and Kévin Nompeix. They accompany this ode to the artist with their seventies suits and other clothes “With positive waves” : shirt covered with a phoenix, quilted jacket which proclaims “Love always” or jacquard coat which represents Michael, the archangel who offers salvation to souls in pain.
Finally, at Lazoschmidl, an invigorating Swedish duo and pop, the announced program is surprising: “German techno in Los Angeles. »In fact, the creators borrow from California the sports shorts, overshirts and sweatshirts, effects tie and dye and swim briefs to float in a Beverly Hills pool. But stimulate the whole of a zest of the very gay Berlin underground, with colorful latex pants and chains as a belt, psyche prints and humorous slogans that offer flirting games or even, franco, oral sex . Rhythmic and punchy.