Sex is not a word you associate with the rarefied world of Jil Sander. Perversion even less. Rodolfo Paglialunga achieved both of those scores in the space of a bunch of looks with his second menswear outing for Jil Sander. To sum it all up, it looked like a wholly new Jil: fast, hard, young.
"Utility" is the explanation Paglialunga gave, but that's an understatement. The stress of functionality—a multiplication of pockets, name tags, straps everywhere—bordered on the delirious, while the cropped, slim, and compact silhouette gave clear nods in the direction of ska. But it was the materials that really got the imagination going—toward all the dark places, that is. Parachute nylon was used prominently on narrow parkas and trousers, and so was a stiff coated canvas that looked like something taken from a truck—the anorak was a standout. It resembled the kind of stuff worn in heavy-duty sex clubs. This is not meant in any way as a negative remark: The electric frisson of the inappropriate injected new energy into the collection, which in fact was welcomed by a roar of applause. The dark palette and the protective forms were hardly summery, but that's not really a problem. And if it all looked a bit repetitive, well, repetition is a Jil Sander code. So, bravo Rudi!
