Amidst the usual hustle of Paris Fashion Week, the Loewe Men’s Fall 2023 show took place at the Tennis Club de Paris (Avenue George Lafont) on Friday. As usual, the energy was palpable, with A-listers and house muses, including Naomi Campbell, Timothee Chalamet, and White Lotus star Will Sharpe, sitting front row to witness, yet again, creative director Jonathan Anderson’s creative genius unfold in front of their very eyes.
The runway show was set in a stripped-back, white room denoting purity at its finest— an overall reductionist spirit took over. The venue was embellished with two large scale digital artworks by Julien Nguyen, who was also the artist behind the portrait miniature created alongside the invitations sent out to guests.
The show opened with a minimal black coat slung over bare shoulders for only the most brave. This season, Anderson’s Loewe proves that indeed clothing is at the epicenter of our fantasies. The color palette was toned down, allowing us to focus purely on the garments and how materials react to the light. It’s a sort of return to the essentials but in a much more contemporary way.
Copper was beaten into the shape of a jacket, turning coats into literal sculptures and wearable works of art. Some looks were embellished with raw-edged copper angel wings, a subtle ode to fashion as a vector of our biggest dreams— fashion that makes you take off, to new heights most certainly. At Loewe Fall 2023, clothing was characterized by a sharp artistic spirit allowing the viewer to escape and wonder in complete authenticity. Just when I thought surprises were coming to an end, an interesting series of puffer balloon shaped trench coats joined the dance, a pleasing reference to childhood and the memories we’ve built.
As the collection unfolded, we were immersed in a reductionist dreamland where cuts and silhouettes seem extremely complex yet of on an astonishing simplicity. Pastel-colored crewnecks make an entrance, volumes are carefully studied, backs are exposed. The boots are slouchy, legs are uncovered, and leather is stacked like jewelry. Tote bags are showcased in maxi proportions, and Loewe’s signature puzzle bag is revisited.
It’s almost naive but It feels simultaneously mature and timeless. Anderson’s Loewe offers an abundance of creativity and a luxurious awareness that puts menswear on a solid pedestal. Needless to say, some of these designs will most likely end up exhibited as a testament of our current reality, where luxury is being challenged but remains an object of eternal desire.
Interestingly enough, this collection offered a cohesive mix of comfortable loungewear and expertly-cut outerwear that would make any fashion enthusiast fall in love at first and immediate sight. Subtlety and details are amongst the leading key words of this Loewe collection, making clothing the full focus of the whole presentation. A love letter to simplicity, craftsmanship, and authenticity like we love to see it. Could reductionism be the new minimalism? Perhaps, a more luxurious take on it.
