Designers typically save talk of new beginnings for their spring collections, but for Hideaki Shikama of Children of the Discordance, fall is a period of renewal. For a second season in a row, Shikama showed his wares in Milan, and time spent in the Italian fashion capital appears to have had an effect. At Tokyo Fashion Week, Shikama is among the hot tickets and a prime example of the city’s streetwise menswear. With its history of tailoring and artisanal focus, Milan approaches the concept of men’s dressing differently, and Shikama has integrated some of that classicism into his work. Though his bread and butter is youthful, elevated athleisure, this season things felt decidedly adult. Amid the anoraks, denim, and hoodies, Shikama worked in a series of neutral separates enlivened by his use of patchwork and print.
From the beginning, Children of the Discordance’s use of upcycled materials has been one of its selling points. The materials make sense from a sustainability standpoint, but carbon offsets can’t quantify the whimsy they add. This season the fabrics range from vintage denim from the 1980s to hand-dyed cotton sourced from a mid-’90s archive. Shikama used both wisely, keeping the color palette neutral and the details subtle. Still, he has a way of adding levity to the most basic of closet staples. A beige button-down should register as boring, but souped up with a touch of houndstooth and interlocking red and black squares, it takes on a charming new verve.
There are no wild gimmicks in Shikama’s fall lineup, just a lot of great pieces forward-thinking men will appreciate. Among them, patchwork jeans in contrasting shades of acid wash, argyle cardigans reimagined as zip-up jackets, and knit sweater sets cozy enough for any work-from-home scenario. The lack of contrivance may have something to do with the time the designer spent considering his brand’s ethos and place in 2021’s unpredictable fashion landscape. “I wanted to restate what Children of the Discordance is really about,” he shared via email. “In the past months, I’ve had time to jog my memory and reevaluate my perception of fashion.” Calling this season a “new beginning,” Shikama dubbed the entire collection Dawn, alluding to the potential to be found at the start of each new day and the fact that Children of the Discordance’s kids have started to grow up.
