The Future Is Past
Seated in the front row of Versace’s fall menswear earlier this week, British actor Ewan McGregor wore a vintage corduroy jacket with the kind of shaggy pile collar one can find only in thrift stores. Next to him, R&B; singer Maxwell had on a long black frock coat, his oversized afro tucked up inside a scarf.
Although clearly throwbacks from earlier generations--namely the 1960s and ‘70s--such fashion statements could just as easily have been taken from the Italian runways. That’s because for fall 1999-2000, everything old is new again.
More than 75 designers from around the world gathered here to present their versions of what men will be wearing. There were Edwardian frock coats and skinny 1950s-style, three-button suits, military jackets, embroidered wide-leg denim jeans, velvet jackets, fur vests and long, mod-looking hand-knit sweaters, nostalgically referred to as the “Maude” look (the long crocheted sweaters worn by Bea Arthur in her 1970s sitcom).
One might expect the collections to be full of techno fabrics and yes, even a few space-age jumpsuits for the 21st century. But not even Nostradamus could have predicted mink, cow hide, pony fur, shearling, alligator, crocodile and other exotic skins moving down the runway. There was so much fur flying here, in fact, that one American specialty store buyer called this “the year of the road kill.”
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Whether space age or ice age, few went as far out with fur and other design notions as Vivienne Westwood, the English designer whose collection opened six days of fashion shows with British boxer Chris Eubanks parading out in a sequined dress and plaid shawl and ended with a model in a massive leather coat with a Mongolian fur collar that appeared to come straight from “Doctor Zhivago.”
Juxtapose that with the more tasteful way the Fendi sisters, Maria Teresa and Silvia, showed their fur vests, full-length, mink-lined coats made of man-made techno fabrics, and a diagonally cut full-length mink worn by Italian actor Christian De Sica, son of director Vittorio. Neither extreme is likely to play in sunny Los Angeles, yet designers here did show that fur--and men’s fashion, in general--does have a softer, more accessible side.
Miuccia Prada, for example, applied leather and fur for fall, but hers took the form of beautiful brown pony-skin jean jackets and hooded suede coats with plastic luggage clips for closures that are sure-fire hits. Not everything in the collection, however, was as successful. Dubbed “Country Surplus,” army-navy surplus might have been more fitting. Indeed, the line is focused on sending fashion-conscious men to the battlefields of the city in olive drab wool trench coats, hooded and belted three-quarter-length jackets and ponchos.
Prada also used the Milan shows to launch its lower-priced Miu Miu Uomo line, which will be available in Los Angeles only at the new Miu Miu store opening on Melrose Avenue later this month.
Donatella Versace did have British rocker Iggy Pop perform shirtless, his skinny, wrinkly flesh flashing the crowd. The collection offered up the kind of hip rock ‘n’ roll fashions Versace customers love, including rose embroidered jackets, leather and shearling coats with fur collars and trim trousers, some dripping with silver glitter, others with fur at the ankles similar to Aspen ski pants. Santo Versace, brother of the late Gianni, said Los Angeles men represent one of the company’s biggest audiences and, after getting its business under control in the Far East, Versace plans to make a major expansion of its lower-priced Versus line, starting with 5,000-square-foot mall stores, including one in the Beverly Center.
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Perhaps the biggest surprise at the Milan shows was the emergence of a new design talent, Neil Barrett, who spent the last few years designing for Prada. Tommy Perse, owner of Maxfield’s in L.A., called Barrett’s collection of felted wool jackets, alpaca wool sweaters and patched, three-button coats, many with military details in olive drab colors, “the greatest thing I’ve seen in Milan.” Perse thinks consumers who appreciate the simplicity of Prada will easily understand Barrett’s minimalist bent.
American designers Tom Ford, the Texas-born star behind the hugely successful Gucci brand, and New Yorker John Bartlett, who now designs Byblos, have also put military themes to good use for fall. Ford, who is said to be eyeing a Hollywood career, may soon get the chance if rumors of a buyout by the French luxury fashion conglomerate Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH) actually takes place. (Earlier this week Prada CEO Patrizio Bertelli sold his 9.5% stake in Gucci to LVMH, making the gamble more likely. Privately, Ford’s partner, fashion writer Richard Buckley, said if the unsolicited sale occurs and, contracts notwithstanding, Gucci management walks as a result, he and Ford could be spending “a whole lot more time” at the Beverly Hills house they bought last year.)
All the speculation didn’t seem to keep Ford from his purpose, which, among other things, is to [get] stylish L.A. men dressed in fire engine red and shiny black crocodile blouson jackets and trim techno fabric suits. Many of Gucci’s clean, boxy wool coats with hidden plackets and stand-up collars are both hip and directional.
