S/S14 is a season where graphics are taking over the fashion set. But you can always trust the house of Lanvin to have struck out on a different note for their menswear collection. Prizing texture over prints and adding luxury through touch it was, “A new way of being elegant,” explained Lanvin’s Creative Director of Menswear, Lucas Ossendrijver. The main concept behind the collection was choice. Instead of pushing a new trend or style, Ossendrijver decided to offer a variety of options. The Lanvin man for S/S14 had the right to be whoever he wanted to be and had a collection that allowed him to do this all in one.
With lots of Lanvin goodies being paraded around on male models, their backstage S/S14 video encapsulated the intensity, of just what goes into creating a world-class fashion show. With The National School of Fine Arts in Paris as their dramatic backdrop, Ossendrijver led the way in explaining the collection. “You see much less shirt, tie, t-shirt. It’s worn directly on the skin. There’s more skin, there’s more sensuality,” Ossendrijver states. Texture, texture, texture followed with viscose and silk mix jackets, soft buttery leathers and finally metallic lamés.
From a businessman to a biker the eclectic mix of looks didn’t cease to amaze. With the stand out piece of the show being a viscose silk jogging outfit sold as a suit, Ossendrijver explained, “I think that’s also a new leisure, new luxury.” In fact the pieces themselves, felt as if they were elusive to any particular season. In a world where we are constantly travelling from a variety of climates, this was a collection where investment reigned over fad. Here’s hoping our better halves pick up on this, so we can start ‘borrowing’ their investments from time to time too.
Lanvin is available at The Dubai Mall (04) 3308008, Emirates Towers Boulevard (04) 3198156, Etihad Towers, Abu Dhabi (02) 6796160 and The Galleria Mall, Abu Dhabi (02) 6771180