Recently in a mood to reduce fashion down to blunt components, Jonathan Anderson switched things up at his Loewe men’s show on Saturday, imposing readily-assembled looks, including roomy trench coats with a cable-knit sweater front and denim pant legs sewn right in.
Here he mind-melded with Junya Watanabe, who also fused together jackets, pants and coats in a quest for cool new outerwear for fall 2024.
At Loewe, striped, white athletic sport socks came attached to skater sneakers — or pinstriped dress pants — while one quarter of a belt attached to jeans flapped freely, the buckle hanging loose and useless.
“A collage of media,” Anderson said after the show, where the preening, thirst-trap paintings of American artist Richard Hawkins were hung around the vast white runway theater, along with video montages broadcast from arched portals meant to resemble stained glass windows.
In this cathedral dedicated to masculinity, and the male sexual gaze, Anderson unfurled another barn-burner of a collection with tinges of grunge and high-school geek. There were also plenty of luxury items to take away one’s breath and mortgage payments, including elongated shearling cardigans, killer leather pants, and astonishing tote bags bearing Hawkins’ artworks in glass beads.
The show broadcast how Loewe is barreling towards fashion’s biggest leagues, its front row stacked with too many handsome actors to list, including Andrew Garfield, Callum Turner, Jamie Dornan, Kit Connor, Matt Bomer, Manu Rios, Archie Madekwe, Nicholas Hoult, Phuwin Tangsakyuen and Josh O’Connor.
Some also appeared in the video collages alongside some men who were more than happy to peel off their tank tops. Anderson asked some of the actors to film selfies to add to his narrative. Dornan checked himself out in the mirror, plucking his tight, white T-shirt over his toned pecs.
One of the most daring, culturally attuned designers working today, Anderson dared to pivot from his ultra high-waisted trousers from spring 2024 to jumbo, low-slung rave pants with cargo pockets and bondage straps.
Having paraded tweed tailoring last season, the designer swung in another direction, pairing retro ski sweaters with colorful track pants, or camp shirts in tablecloth checks over those mega cargos. (For Loewe purists, there were handsome woolen coats and sleek leather outerwear, too.)
Hawkins’ colorful artworks appeared on tapered pants, long cardigans and hoodies. Splashing high culture on normal clothes was an example of what Anderson described as a “leveling off” in contemporary culture.
You couldn’t say that about Loewe, which continues to stand above the fashion pack in terms of invention, originality and verve. The collection was young, fun and had a lot of spunk.
