#LFW: Menswear Shines at Central Saint Martin's MA Show
Looks by Ben Rice, Erik Litzén, and Charles Jefrrey at the Central Saint Martins MA Collection. Photos: Getty Images
Central Saint Martins, the famed fashion school that gave us Alexander McQueen and his successor Sarah Burton, Stella McCartney, and Givenchy designer Riccardo Tisci among others, held their annual fashion show for the students in the Masters program last night. The show featured designs from fifteen students in the Textile design, Knitwear, Womenswear and Menswear programs, all remarkable in their creativity, as is expected for a school that Kanye West recently described as “the Yale of Fashion Design.”
Saint Martins is known to encourage more experimental and conceptual approaches to fashion, and the menswear designers managed to craft an incredible balance between creativity and wearability. It was their vision that I found the most compelling at the show last night, and it was the clothes that I wish I could wear myself the most.
My three favorite menswear looks from the night came from Ben Rice, whose ’90s-tinged clothes were thoroughly modern. I loved his new proportion, of a slightly cropped pant with an extra-large cuff, and his take on the “Canadian tuxedo,” which featured a sleeveless denim pullover shirt as opposed to a denim jacket. Erik Litzén’s view was more romantic, and had slight airs of the more feminine clothes we have seen in the menswear runways recently. I especially loved his higher-waist loose trousers, worn with also loose jackets, that reminded me of The Little Prince. Last, is Charles Jeffrey whose clothes featured hand painted details in primary colors, and who also made a statement with his slightly flared, awkwardly belted trousers, that made the silhouette softer without losing any of its “masculinity.” The men in Jeffrey’s collection were wearing hose under their trousers, with their waistbands pulled high, to better tuck their shirts into. If it sounds crazy, it certainly was, but it was also the perfect detail. Can’t wait to see where these three bright designers might end up in the future.
Related: The Best Looks from New York Fashion Week
