POP 029/ Monday, 29 June 2009

Today’s Pop is Paul in Paris. How to file a men’s show report when there’s still so much crying by the Seine to be done, “Human Nature” on repeat repeat on that iPod? Paul, remember, you are not alone xxx

This weekend’s word was Compelling. Compelling replaces ‘covetable’, which kind of went out the window when people figured that luxury has long been over-utilised and devalued as a consumer concept. Whoa there with the alliteratives, already!

Compelling was my mission during the Paris men’s shows. It neatly takes up the baton from my previous enduring buzzword, Integrity. Quite frankly, fashion could do with a lot more of these.

Compelling was Rick Owens invigorating an already resonant signature with a steely confidence that pushed the boat out yet further. Check them boots out! What is so alluring about Owens’ clothing is that they are so effortlessly distressed and the glamour emerges once they are worn. He doesn’t need to try and achieve this mood – his aesthetic simply embodies it. It’s a collection that isn’t obsessed with dystopian futurism; or with the romantic nostalgia of bygone eras. Instead, Owens offers fresh perspectives on urban sportswear that are undeniably forward thinking, and always tethered to a gritty reality.

Belgian designer, Ann Demeulemeester is another advocate of the monochrome palette. And, whilst her ubiquitous black continued to dominate the collection, there was welcome relief in the stripped down outfits – no more layering – and oyster satin trousers topped with flowing dustcoats and separate hoods. Boxers to the ringside were followed by Samurai pants scaled up into evening wear with leather cummerbunds.

Almost every colour but black made up the engaging kaleidoscope of colours at Junya Watanabe and Comme des Garcons. Watanabe continued his exploratory relationships with established garment manufacturers – this time, Macintosh outerwear and Trickers shoes – and enjoyed rewriting the menswear codes. Traditional checked blazers with felt elbow pads fashioned out of Gore-Tex were matched with long shorts and flatcaps. Madras check or gingham single-breast jackets were sportier for their attached hoods.

If the Japanese were associated with nothing but black for the first three decades of business, Comme des Garcons Homme Plus has surely reversed any possibility of a lingering reputation in recent years. In partnership with the myriad of colours was a motley assortment of fabrics attached to Dogstooth checked suit jackets. Silk foulards, neckties, Arran knits and tartan. Kawakubo is always reverential to the sartorial parameters of male dressing. It is within those boundaries that she likes to play. This collection made me think of a young man late for work, throwing on everything he can find in the hope it somehow makes sense by the time he arrives at his office.

Kitsuné’s vibe continues to be full of boyish charm and refreshingly optimistic in its outlook. If Watanabe’s “Snobbish” collection was all about the gentleman golfer, Kitsuné’s would be the style-conscious son. Seersucker never looked so appealing in their light pink shades. A slightly shorter Macintosh coat and KGC (Kitsuné Golf Club) emblem cardigans complete the look.

As it’s Paris, we should conclude with Lanvin – the city’s celebrated King of Louche. Under the creative eye of Alber Elbaz, menswear designer Lucas Ossendrijver continued to join all the dots of a compulsive wardrobe proposition. Heavy boots offset the schoolboy neat suits that opened the show. And then the parade of colours that makes Lanvin such a pleasure to consider purchasing. Tobacco, mulberry, fern and light petrol blue – mixed between suits and sporty separates. Combined with the traditional dance salon environment and carefully orchestrated soundtrack, that got more uplifting as the show progressed, Lanvin claimed justifiable dressing rights to the sophisticated male.

We came, we saw, we were compelled.

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