After the pandemic, fashion week seemed to quickly return to its flower-filled routine. Posts of celebrities met in Milan began to appear on social media, fashion bloggers were obsessed with finding the next street photography trend that would explode in short videos, and fashion brands carefully wrote dozens of pages of press releases to explain the cultural background or artistic inspiration behind the runway.
And what about clothes?
Those everyday, practical, quiet, and non-noisy clothes seem to have long since failed to attract people's attention. Therefore, Prada's announcement that the theme of its Fall/Winter 2023 collection is "Let's Talk About Clothes", which is somewhat reasonable and unexpected.
The ornate chandeliers hidden in the ceiling slowly descend with the powerful show music, creating an ambiguous contrast between fast and slow in rhythm.
From the "Tale of Two Cities" between Milan and Shanghai in spring/summer 2022 to the crossover catwalk of ten Hollywood male stars in autumn/winter 2022, although Prada has never been a brand known for gimmicks, it has always made people praise for these ingenious settings. But this time, Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons tried to simplify all the factors that could interfere with the view.
The show space of Deposito, the site of the Fondazione Prada in Milan, has not been decorated with any fancy decorations, leaving only a poured concrete skeleton. The only "fancy" is probably the chandelier hanging above the audience's head, hidden in the hollow of the ceiling, slowly descending under the powerful show music. The two sides form a dangerous but ambiguous game of speed and slowness in rhythm.
In this simple and primitive space, the size is redesigned, the ceiling rises or falls according to the rhythm of the fashion show, and the space is also controlled in this way, wandering between "wide vision" and "psychological oppression", which in turn changes the perspective from which we view clothing. This process coincides with the garment itself, either being stretched or shortened. They demonstrate the reconstruction of meaning and identity that is reactivated through simple gestures.
The slow change of the show space unexpectedly changes the viewer's perspective on the clothes, and at the same time echoes the clothing itself, either being stretched or shortened.
Most of the models who stride out wear similar platforms of derbys, which will never steal the limelight from their clothes. The handbag that appears in many looks like an oversized metal case containing a water bottle (apparently also for everyday items like laptops and folders), taking pragmatism to the extreme.
The only thing that looks bright, lively and decorative is the detachable collar that runs through the entire collection – extremely sharp and slender shapes, with geometric prints and varied candy-coloured designs – that impresses. The models took off their underwear shirts and instead embellished their coats and jackets directly with detachable collars, exposing the skin on their chests appropriately.
Colors, materials, silhouettes, everything is focused on the most basic elements that make up a garment. In the first dozen sets, dark tones common in winter, such as black, blue, and gray, built the main tone of the entire collection, until the middle of the collection, the classic bright orange lining of the bomber jacket broke the dullness, and gentle dyes such as sky blue, goose yellow, lotus pink, moss green appeared in the color palette, echoing the detachable collar.
In addition to Prada's usual satin blazers and jackets, the Fall/Winter 2023 menswear collection features a number of fluffy pieces in cotton – white cocoon-shaped jackets and silhouette vests like pillows that can be carried around – further illustrating the "everydayness" of the collection with softness and comfort. Suede jackets and bomber jackets are a staple in everyone's autumn and winter wardrobe.
Prada Fall/Winter 2023 menswear collection
The garment strips out extraneous details and wraps the figure in tactile communication with the naked body. "The silhouette is emphasized, amplified and diminished, exploring extreme changes in the sense of volume in haute couture through the structure of the garment."
For Muccia Prada, practicality itself is a cultural proposition. "The most sincere thing we can do is create something useful for people today... We always talk about reality, and as designers, we are very aware of what is happening, problems and difficulties. In an interview with VOGUE, she said.
What's more, the simple cut reflects the designer's skill. The neat coat and slim suit pants were meticulously wrapped around the model's body; The suede dress has tough lines reminiscent of studio aprons; Even the most exaggerated oversized jackets in the collection feature a shoulder line treatment similar to the suit silhouette to keep the overall look from being sluggish.
As Raf Simons' first appearance after closing his personal label, Prada's Fall/Winter 2023 menswear collection was subject to a lot of speculation ahead of its launch – will this collection show more of Simons' personal style? Will Prada menswear be more dominated by Simons in the future?
Whatever the future, at least this time we can see Simons' personal color. The oversized bomber jacket became his signature piece of the collection, along with the buttonless shirt and slim pants (previously shown in other aviation-themed collections) that Simons had clearly had. The colorful suits, coats and cardigans that appear in the second half of the collection can also find clues in his previous works.
With everyday design and Simons' aesthetic, what's missing?
The answer is a bit of recognition that sets Prada apart from other brands. The designer duo certainly doesn't overlook this detail. The opening detachable collar features pink and dark brown panels, a colour scheme we've seen countless times on the Prada runway; Several bomber jackets were tightened at the waist, much more restrained than Simons' previous presentation; Not to mention the triangles that appear on the suede shape, following the design details of previous collections.
"This collection is about clothing archetypes, improved on classic cuts and silhouettes – their formal language has been changed. The collection is also associated with Prada's DNA, with details embedded in the clothes that allow us to recognize it as Prada's identity. The meticulous and distinctive design of this collection reflects the heritage and history of the Maison, as well as the significance of Prada today. Simons said.
Going back to the original question, this creative combination wittily combines the two conceptual definitions of clothes in "clothing" and "fashion", amplifying the "quiet" in daily life and weakening the "noise" in daily life, and finally telling us that people wear clothes, not clothes people.