Given the ever-present masculine influence in Barbara Bui’s collections, an expansion into menswear seemed almost inevitable, especially with so many brands seizing on the market potential of gender fluidity. For the showroom visit, Bui readied some of the pieces that guys will be able to buy later this year: polished coats in camel and houndstooth; sportier outerwear including a luxe aviator jacket and duffle coat; and her signature slim leather pants, sized accordingly. Wearing these pieces in the lookbook, a male model exudes good attitude—as does the female model who, unsurprisingly, can also be found in going-out looks that remain true to Bui’s chic stylings. If the way she summed up this new exercise gave pause—“The design is both masculine and feminine, or else neither masculine nor feminine”— there was nothing ambiguous about her “couture arty” references. Drawing from ska and the ’80s fashions of designers like Emanuel Ungaro yielded dresses in tiers of high-contrast polka dots (especially those in orange and blue), or blocked in black and white; houndstooth boots that would be fun to wear from time to time; and a few cape-like tops that were an all-in-one statement.
With the haute Parisian angle such a natural fit for Bui, it was nice to also see some variety in the argyle grouping, which included a great patchwork of leather and denim, and graphic pattern-blocking, namely a cool quilted jacket. She said that designing men’s helped give strength to the women’s wardrobe, and it appears this was the case.
