Front row at Saint Laurent Menswear fall 2016
We know now that Anthony Vaccarello, he of thigh-high slits, barely there dresses and plenty of skin, will be taking the helm at Saint Laurent now that Hedi Slimane has retired from the storied French brand. But before his final bow during Paris Fashion Week, Slimane took the time out to showcase Saint Laurent’s menswear collection — with a few choice women’s picks, too — out here in our own fair city. And in classic Slimane style, the designer took over the historic Palladium for a concert-cum-fashion show that brought out just about every celebrity in Los Angeles.
Saint Laurent mens fall 2016
At the time, few knew that it was going to Slimane’s final menswear show, though rumors fly at the end of just about every season when it comes to fashion’s game of designer musical chairs. To wit, he showed a collection of rock ‘n’ roll suits, had plenty of Bowie influences and gave fans of the brand plenty to add to their growing wish lists. The girls didn’t play second fiddle to the men, however, stomping down the runway in brand-new looks that brought a focus to a midi length, micro floral prints and plenty of glam thanks to fur pieces and bold, wide belts cinching the waist. A closer look at those blooms showed that they were inspired by the Marquis de Sade’s erotic writings.
Who was on hand to witness it all? Lady Gaga, Joan Jett, Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi, Sylvester Stallone, Kate Hudson, Lenny Kravitz and daughter Zoë, Lisa Bonet, Jessica Alba, Pamela Anderson, Alexa Chung, and more. Justin Beiber was skateboarding around the venue before the show, too, if that indicates just how far from Parisian salons this experience was.
Saint Laurent mens fall 2016
But back to the clothes: skinny suiting was in, so skinny, in fact, that we could barely differentiate the men from the women (especially when guys were wearing pussy-bow blouses). In today’s world of androgynous fashion, it wasn’t completely out of left field. Three-piece suits, wide hats and embroidery in the shape of music notes were all featured on the men, in addition to retro looking wayfarer shades and heeled boots — a signature that we’re not sure will translate into the Vaccarello era of YSL.
Saint Laurent mens fall 2016
Slimane has been criticized for a laser focus on a specific type of clientele. And the collections that she showed for the house of Saint Laurent never veered too far from the ultra-thin bohemian L.A. babe and her teddy boy paramour. This collection was no different, though the guys did get a dose of glam rock with velvet, satin and plenty of formalwear-influenced detailing.
It was Slimane going out on a high note, after all the critiques he faced for moving YSL away from Paris and towards the sunny shores of L.A. But he proved that fashion would follow him to our shores. And this show proved it.
For more information, visit www.ysl.com.
Images courtesy YSL, Vogue Runway
