A bow as a blindfold, with a black sweater and what seemed to be either a voluminous pair of trousers or a taffeta ball skirt: Kim Jones’s opening look was the conceptual harbinger of the most pared-back exploration of the canon of Christian Dior he’s put on the runway for men. In fact, as it passed by, the garment in question was seen to be neither a trouser nor a skirt. It was a coat, worn backwards, with the collar creating a kind of asymmetric cummerbund, the tucked-in sleeves forming ‘pockets,’ and buttons running down the back.
Notionally, at least, it appeared to be a woman’s coat—symbolic, perhaps, of how Jones has often delved into the Dior archive to translate its 20th century ultra-femininity into a proposition for 21st century men. This season, he said the architecture of Dior’s “H-Line” haute couture collection of fall 1954-55 had caught his interest: “When you look at it, apart from the embroidery, in fact it’s much more similar to men’s tailoring than you’d think.”
For the most part, Jones seemed to be in a mood to strip things back, allowing the subtleties of cut and minimal color—Dior signature gray, shell pink, black, white and browns—to speak for themselves. The most obvious quotations from Dior’s womenswear came in the pink silk faille swing coat, implanted with another bow at the back of the neck, and the silver floral-embroidered belted kimono coat as the finale.
For the most part, however, it was the quiet luxury which spoke loudest. The asymmetrically fastened one-button jacket, which Jones originally began to propose with his sensational fall 2019 collection, has become an established mainstay of the house. This season, it was reiterated in the finest vicuna for day and in pristine white as an evening jacket.
Jones has been known as a leading force who brought the language of streetwear to luxury fashion, and brought a new generation’s taste to the runway. These days, that conversion is so complete and normalized that it can go without logos and noise, subtly expressed in minimal cropped jackets or perhaps a finest putty-colored nappa leather sweatshirt, softly draped at the neck in a manner that echoes a Christian Dior couture dress. One of those iykyk moments, well done for this moment of quiet luxury.
