Hunter/hunted

Thom Browne FW14
19 January 2014
Above:

Thom Browne Fashion Show in Paris, Paris Fashion Week, Menswear Fall Winter 2014 Collection

As usual, Thom Browne exploited the possibility of ‘spectacular’ that a fashion show offers.

Browne created a prey and predator scenario. Whereas other shows this season used fur collars, biker, bomber and hunting jackets to experiment with this theme, Browne went full-tilt and flooded the runway with a menagerie of animals and an army of hunters.

Animals were demarcated through their headwear. Ranging from the sculpturally avant-garde creations of twisted wire round the head, resembling antlers, to the blatantly obvious full elephantine mask, these headdresses crowned clean cut pinstripe suits paired with shorts. Kilts cut at the mid-thigh and below the knee lay over shorts, draping and flowing freely across suits with characteristic Thom-Browne-tightness. Hems had a deconstructed edge, frayed at the sides, highlighted by the use of different colours – grey for the suit jacket and black for the hems.

The hunters entered in complete contrast. Instead of maintaining the pinstripe unity of the animals, their clothes were instead adorned with a leafy paisley-style print, covering full looks and extending, painted, onto the models’ faces.

In opposition to the athletic, slim-lined cuts of the animals, the hunters’ garments were uncannily huge. Models were made three times their regular size with large structured coats and trousers. Some of these pieces were drawn in at the waist and tapered at the ankles and wrists, revealing the models’ true dimensions beneath, emphasised by oversized trousers in clear plastic over the top of skin tight paisley trousers.

GALLERYCatwalk images from Thom Browne FW14





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