At Comme Des Garçons Rei Kawakubo has a wonderful knack for doing avant-garde with just a little dash of vaguely droll distinction and in a way that doesn’t come off too overblown. Uniquely constructed Bermuda suits were her starting point for this seasons menswear and from there on the designer continued to contort suits and patch-work them with panels of fabric. If these came off as minimal gestures of her often overwrought design, Kawakubo then decided to make them appear practically stark in comparison to almost skin-tight suits scrawled with calligraphy.
Lashings of leather then became the next order of the day and while these looks may not have been the most practical linear options considering their predecessors, this diversion was a stylish one nonetheless. Throughout the rest of the collection, Kawakubo then played these looks against each other and settled on something that veered between suits and skirts. Other idiosyncratic touches that she chucked in at this point because, why not, included zebra print sleeves suspended by a bondage style belt and matching face masks.
The final addition of a clinical white belted trench stole the show and cemented that even if you aren’t one of Comme’s loyal followers, you should be able to distinguish a passing fancy here and there.
by Liam Feltham
Images courtesy of Style.com