“I don’t want my collections to have a conclusion,” said Hussein Chalayan after his latest, AW20 men’s show. That’s the kind of guy he is: cerebral, provocative and in his head. And that’s why we love him. Always respectful of his rich past, but consistently embracing the future, Chalayan is one of the greatest gems London’s fashion scene has to offer. And he’s shining as bright as ever, as evident in his today’s menswear show.
Soundtracked by a range of voices giving instructions on posture and behaviour, models walked around the boat-shaped installation in the middle of his flagship store demonstrating what perfection in tailoring looks like. Classic menswear shapes with a serious twist relied on cocoon forms as well as techniques of folding and layering in a refined vision of trompe l’oeil, reminding us what all those years of experience result in. These are clothes you want to look at and touch, one piece at a time, discovering details as hours go by. And while the ideas are intellectual, Chalayan’s pieces seem attainable. You can actually imagine a regular man with a regular job wearing one of his stunning folded coats. It’s up to you to understand how complex and simple these clothes are. But their beauty – that’s universal.
Photographs by Jason Lloyd-Evans
