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Show Report

Show Report: Comme des Garçons Homme Plus A/W 16

by Lou Stoppard on 23 January 2016

Lou Stoppard reports on the Comme des Garçons Homme Plus A/W 16 show.

Lou Stoppard reports on the Comme des Garçons Homme Plus A/W 16 show.

Rei Kawakubo has been questioning machismo and the props and staples of masculine dressing for a while now. For S/S 15 she toyed with the items men turn to to feel strong - pointed toe shoes (she’d extended the ends to comedy lengths), suits, military garb. In that show, she also looked at the horrors that can be caused by anger, violence and out-of-control masculinity, suggesting war and pain via the bullet holes that littered some pieces. Well, those ideas were still clearly in her mind for A/W 16. Her tailoring referenced armour - conjuring images of medieval knights at war. It got one thinking about how much, and paradoxically how little, we’ve progressed since men put on a suit of silver to feel strong. Kawakubo’s version of battle-wear featured various different types of fabric - some elegant, some awkward, some matching, some clashing, some opulent, some everyday - stitched to give the impression of metal sections hinged together. Other jackets featured studs suggesting rivets and screws.

Anyone could read into the usual cliches of fashion as armour - something one puts on to transform into a stronger character in order to face the day. But this felt political - it was about life, not style. That sense of twisting masculinity, or undermining any inferences of toughness, was evident in the elaborate floral hair pieces created by Julien Dys. While the boys were in ’fearsome’ armour, they also sported these sweet, sizeable posies. At the end of the show, these modern knights emerged holding large bouquets, rendered in strange neon shades - it was like a peace offering, but somehow warped. The intention or ideals of these boys wasn’t clear - were they fighters or lovers, victims or perpetrators? As with every Comme show, questions were left unanswered.

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