Fashion Week Round-Up: Paris Men’s Fall/Winter 2024

Paris-based designers continued to push the boundaries of men’s fashion, flexing their creative muscles with standout collections. Below, discover some of PAUSE’s favourite shows, ranging from established household names to exciting contemporary labels.

This season, Rick Owens unveiled his most personal collection to date, naming it “Porterville” in honour of his hometown. The Californian native welcomed guests into his townhouse, on the historic Place du Palais Bourbon, where his signature avant-garde sensibilities were realised through extreme proportions. Owens described these warped silhouettes as “grotesque and inhuman” —a sartorial commentary on the current state of the world. Models ambled from room to room in gigantic alpaca capes fastened into large knots and overstuffed puffer coats with sky-high collars. Many of the looks were further exaggerated by rubber inflatable boots created in collaboration with Straytukay, a London-based designer.

PHOTO CREDIT: Rick Owens

KidSuper’s Colm Dillane has a reputation for surprising audiences with his playful fashion spectacles, previously disrupting the conventional runway format by recreating an auction house for SS23′ and a comedy show for FW23′. His latest offering, titled “String Theory,” was no exception, featuring live violinists and a male ballet dancer who opened the presentation twirling across the catwalk in a ruffled black suit. The collection highlighted Dillane’s design prowess, ranging from colourful tailoring and textured outerwear to chunky knits and denim sets. Guests were treated to an appearance from Brazilian football legend, Ronaldinho, who wore a teddy coat over a T-shirt emblazoned with his face.

PHOTO CREDIT: KidSuper

After a four-year absence from the Paris Men’s Fashion Week schedule, Balmain returned, influenced by the dandy stylings of Congo’s sapeurs. Sharp tailoring was rendered in a vibrant array of colours, while other suits were decorated with polka dots and prints envisioned by Ghanaian visual artist Prince Gyasi. Remaining true to his modern and maximalist design language, creative director Olivier Rousteing transposed an oversized AI-generated face onto a crystal-encrusted coat. Naomi Campbell closed the show dressed in a camel coat accented with a metallic gold bouquet belt buckle.

PHOTO CREDIT: Daniele Oberrauch / Gorunway.com.

Serhat Işık and Benjamin Huseby, the design duo behind GmbH, opened their presentation with a powerful speech, calling for peace in the Middle East and referring to the rise of antisemitism and Islamophobia. The Palestinian Keffiyeh scarf punctuated the politically charged collection, draped around the models’ necks and appearing on tailoring. Hoodies were printed with “Untitled Nations”, while watermelon motifs, the unofficial emblem of Palestinian solidarity, accented T-shirts. 

PHOTO CREDIT: GmbH