Ann Demeulemeester Men's FW11 Paris

[Shucks]

tbh, i think there is also an issue of poor styling at play here. even though there is considerable/extraneous detailing (slashes/flaps/buttons) on jackets, waistcoats and blazers in view of my personal preferences, i do believe that there are alternative ways to wear many of these items that will do them better justice, or bring a different flavor to them. for starters, by keeping some of those jacket flaps buttoned and wearing simpler layers underneath.

some of the longer jackets (frock coats?) are just beautiful and the different pants are something i will be looking at closely when they hit the shops. the three piece suit (with paint splash effect and notched lapels) looks like a fantastic cut - somehow both sharp and relaxed - and those grey dirty/streaked drop crotch pants are gorgeous. and the triple laces will be mine. combats with double straps are nice as well..

that said, i really do not like the choice of color accents.

[t-bone]

Ah yes I wanted to ask, is the dropped crotch on the grey trousers new territory for Ann's menswear? I can't seem to remember seeing anything so prounounced in the past, save for some more subtle drops in the recent high-waisted pants (which I suppose could be emphasized by wearing them lower).

[BECOMING-INTENSE]

But to-night, at Mme. Verdurin’s, scarcely had the little pianist begun to play
when, suddenly, after a high note held on through two whole bars, Swann saw it
approaching, stealing forth from underneath that resonance, which was prolonged
and stretched out over it, like a curtain of sound, to veil the mystery of its
birth—and recognised, secret, whispering, articulate, the airy and fragrant
phrase that he had loved. And it was so peculiarly itself, it had so personal a
charm, which nothing else could have replaced, that Swann felt as though he had
met, in a friend’s drawing-room, a woman whom he had seen and admired, once, in
the street, and had despaired of ever seeing her again. Finally the phrase
withdrew and vanished, pointing, directing, diligent among the wandering
currents of its fragrance, leaving upon Swann’s features a reflection of its
smile. But now, at last, he could ask the name of his fair unknown (and was told
that it was the andante movement of Vinteuil’s SONATA for the piano and violin),
he held it safe, could have it again to himself, at home, as often as he would,
could study its language and acquire its secret.

- Marcel Proust À la recherche du temps perdu

[beardown]

I can't even say I own a huge amount of Ann but when it comes to presenting the new lines and pieces, she has a way of making other designers look like amateurs in certain areas.

There's just no doubt that she has a remarkable talent and eye for layering and angles and balance...almost in way where she flirts with chaos but ends up with the most glorious kind of order.

I won't get too far into it but she is the designer I look forward to the most when the time comes to reveal new work. And I agree with Kunk wholeheartedly...for my money, other than Rick...she always seems to move forward with new ideas while maintaining her signature style and consistency. I've written about 'vision' quite a bit but this is what I'm speaking about: She experiments with materials and plays with cuts masterfully and confidently. And it comes across in the presentation. Where some designers come across as playing with clothing, she is mastering it in my opinion.

I wear (and prefer to wear) a lot more Rick than I do Ann. And in the big scope of vision and aesthetic, I relate to some other designers more on a personal taste level. But Ann is one of the few designers that makes me wish I could carry off a more refined/polished look. I just have a shit ton of respect for her, what she does and how she pulls it off.

I can't even say I like this more than some of the past few seasons but in terms of craftsmanship and tailoring...it's always consistent and consistently impressive.

[kunk75]

^on your last point and even more so than carol. rick owens and ann d. seem to have a singularly focused vision of what a man should wear as opposed to carol's vision, which I get the feeling, often is partly based on an inside joke that no one but him is privy to.

While rick s/s collections are often a fail IMO, I marvel at her ability to play with fabric weight and layering while still maintaining a vision which is also a big part of what separates our beloved designers from "fashion" — you could effortlessly mix ann pieces (and rick not to beat a dead horse) from this season with pieces from 10, 12 years ago without deliterious effect and how many designers can you say that about?

[thehouseofdis]

First impression is that I love the treatments of some of these fabrics (the bleaching and bleeding of colors) as well as the sharkskin and I'm am thrilled with the narrow shawl collars. I think the splits and cuts in the jackets and vest are great and will be fun to play around with.

In my opinion I think some of the styling is off and it's not as good as it normally is. I do like of of the hair pieces worn around the neck, but she's done similar things in the past with horse hair. I'm happy to see less accessories and more suiting.

As far as the color is concerned, Ann almost always does some (or a lot of colors) but they usually don't all end up being on the runway. In that sense, this collection looks a little jumbled to me ( a little orange, a little blue, some red, some purple...). However, in the end there are plenty of things to love.

I can't wait to see some better images of the individual pieces.

Was anyone at the show? A friend sent me a clip of the final walk and the music sounded like Nick Cave or Dirty Three (really just heard what sounded like Warren Ellis' violin) but I'm interested in hearing the show.

[Shucks]

Ah yes I wanted to ask, is the dropped crotch on the grey trousers new territory for Ann's menswear? I can't seem to remember seeing anything so prounounced in the past, save for some more subtle drops in the recent high-waisted pants (which I suppose could be emphasized by wearing them lower).

i think this is what is being done here as well...

[jdemotion]

The overall feel of this is more like her women's line to me, but as a whole I like this. It is different seeing more bright, saturated colors on the runway as opposed to her usual darker palette. Really like the cream pants and the footwear, I love the design of the triple lace boots but I think they work better on the ladies. I think there are some really strong pieces in the collection, looking forward to seeing some showroom pics.

[casem]

I like, and it is certainly better than what most designers are putting out, but for as high as Ann sets the bar for herself (especially for F/W collections) it's a let down. It's like the last black and white collection colored in, which is fine but I miss the richer winter pieces she does so well. Where are the great coats and knits? When broken down, most of these looks are blazers and/or vests and pants. I do like the slimmer pant proportions, but I know they will never be an option for me because she charged $1000+ for pants. I'm also getting sick of all the leather and shiny black, not just from her but in general.

Anyway, that sounded really negative, but mostly I like

[thehouseofdis]

Shirts are so last decade!

[philip nod]

Not feeling the exploding cubist waistline

[im_parfait]

Adorable collection! I like the suits very much especially the red one! I wish I could go to office in such clothes! God, save the casual Fridays!

[michael_kard]

I love this, especially the trousers and boots... Can't wait to examine the triple-laced ones in person (and subsequently spend all my money on them). Most of the jackets seem highly unwearable though, a bit too theatrical perhaps... Everything looks very beautiful but I'm not sure if it will look as unpretentious and streamlined in reality

[niji248]

No surprises here, very quintessential Ann D. Which is a good thing, at least it means her vision is true and authentic. However, I do hope that she could break out the box a bit more, in terms of shapes and colors.

In terms of shapes, they are beautifully fitting clothes, but it's too much of the same thing - tailored jacket with split waist or split notch lapels, then the waistcoat version, then the long version, then the black, the grey, and everything in between. A lot of the colors are her typical accent colors - that muddy orange and red, a dusty blue (which is fine because no one really is counting on her for colors).

I just hope that she could explore the shapes and pattern-techniques more. After looking at the collection piece by piece, it really just come down to few shapes and all 30 looks are just repetitions in difference fabrications. My favorite Ann collections are from the 90s and from the mid-2000s, especially from 05-07. Those collections were much richer in terms of variety of silhouettes. She played more with 3-dimensional constructions, such as in spring and fall 2007 collections. There were more precision in her work in the 90s when it's not over-styled, and they were just fantastic simple clothes to wear. In terms of styling the mid-2000s were visionary. Personally, in the past few seasons it's lacking a bit of that "feeling" in the clothes. I remember a while ago I bought the most basic black wool jacket by her because it felt just incredible, like air, like nothing else I've ever tried on before. That's what I miss from her work.

It is a good Ann collection overall, but I wish there is that extra kick to send me to a frenzy and anticipation for the goods. I mean, I need a reason to buy another black Ann coat, another black Ann jacket, and another black Ann waistcoat. Just a slit on the waistline or a split in the collar won't do.

[moderninc2010]

I love Demeulemeester and always will.

Additions of color is not a problem for me as most of my Ann pieces are black!