New York Men’s Day, the annual presentation organized by Agentry PR and held during New York Fashion Week, returned to Hudson Yards on Friday, occupying three floors of an industrial building. Men’s Day has become a heavily edited but stateside-worthy alternative to international menswear fashion weeks, and this season, there are designers involved, making menswear, regardless of gender, even A little girly.
This season’s sponsors, Canadian giant Nobis Outerwear and menswear brand Cross Eyed Moose, represent the more functional side of menswear with strong outerwear proposals, tactical details, outdoor camouflage and heatmap prints One side – call it “Gorpcore”, if you really need to. Raleigh Workshop incorporates textures of paneling and distressed denim into slouchy and relaxed silhouettes, Kent Anthony applies intricate rope patterns to soft tailoring, and Stephen Mikhail’s Atelier Cillian focuses on black-dominated silhouettes. Slim fit and sleek look – the brand’s soft, draped tops are outstanding. In fact, black is the main color in the display case. Aaron Potts of A.Potts cut most of his genderless collections in black, as did Julian Medina of Dionysus.
Terry Singh returns to menswear for fall, again ditching trousers in favor of pleated skirts paired with tailored jackets, all in a range of playful suiting cuts. 2017 LVMH Prize finalists Jahnkoy’s Burkindy and Marusya Tamboura also exude a certain vibrancy, mixing colorful traditional textiles with contemporary silhouettes. The equally whimsical space is occupied by All Beneath Heaven newcomer Jimmy Alexander, who uses hand-painted prints and metal and glass embroidery; menswear designer Nicholas Raefski, who based his heroes on John Lennon, Tiger Woods and Freddie Mercury Lee created a collection; and the exciting newcomer Beam Rachapol Ngaongam of knitwear brand Bulan, who presented a fascinating first collection at the show.
