After a hiatus of some years, Hussein Chalayan's menswear is back by popular demand—and how we've missed it. Necessarily simpler than his womenswear, this collection still managed to reflect the same quirky sensuality as the Resort lineup that the designer was showing simultaneously: the same Moorish-tinged patterns, the same print of water irrigation systems, all looking leisure-like in short-sleeve shirts and Bermuda shorts. The pieces had the vague feel of the fifties that subtly infused Chalayan's resortwear.
Chalayan doesn't like men to wear "designed" clothes, so his focus here was on fabric and classic cut. But that doesn't mean he restrained himself from quintessential Chalayan-isms like the Transformer pieces: a shirt that turned itself inside out and elongated down around the waist, almost like a tribal skirt, or a smartly tailored black jacket with a white shirt stitched inside, which shrugged off to become something cape-like. Both items sound furiously designed, but their technical acuity saved them. The designer insisted they were very much part of the collection, and not the kind of showpieces his fans relish.
