Early club culture inspired a colorful and experimental collection. LOEWE Spring Summer 2022 men’s runway collection. The message is one of electrifying escapism; of hope and optimism.
Growing up in Northern Ireland, Jonathan Anderson remembers going out to the clubs on Friday night, which involved “lots of aftershave” and experimenting with different kinds of fashions.
He channeled that anything-goes, hedonistic spirit into his spring men’s collection for Loewe, which goes from handsome tailored coats in the Spanish house’s Anagram logo or glossy cactus leather to what he described as “full disco ball.”
Cue the show video, which depicts a young man in a tinsel-fringed tank and shorts dancing with abandon in a nightclub in Marseille, laser beams slicing the air. Other revellers showed up in sequinned, zebra-motif shorts and tops, or neon knits layered up like glow-stick bracelets.
“It’s about dressing outside of your comfort zone, or dressing for imaginary or real events,” Anderson explained in a Zoom call. “It’s about losing yourself in a crowd.”
In addition to the video, with voiceover musings from Anderson, Loewe published two sumptuous hardcover books: one featuring the hoodlum paintings and grimy, violence-tinged photos of German artist Florian Krewer; the other photos by David Sims of street-cast characters hanging around a basketball court, or playing with pink bubble wrap in a studio. Also included in the designer’s latest “collection in a box” were art posters, luminescent bedroom ceiling stars and a snap bracelet.
Despite that avalanche of content, some of it disquieting, and Anderson’s deep thoughts about our nearly post-COVID-19 world, what came across in the collection was spontaneity and the rush of fashion experimentation. Like a teenage Anderson prepping for a big night out, one can imagine a daring Loewe customer tickled to try out a leather parka with portholes at the knee; a tiered top of knotted and draped satin, or a ribbed cotton tank and matching shorts in a beach-y print.
One of the most striking — and bonkers — garments in the collection is a lean Crombie coat with a convex shield of hammered metal sewn into the back. Anderson loves that it “distorts the silhouette” while at the same time reminding him of the funhouse mirrors at a local carnival. Boys, they wanna have fun, too.
Creative direction by @Jonathan.Anderson
Photography by @DavidSimsOfficial
Art direction by @MMparisdotcom
Styling by @BenjaminBruno_
Casting by @AshleyBrokaw, @VincentOlivieri_ and @MidlandAgency
Set design by @VincentOlivieri_
Featuring Luka, Antoine, Lee, Lamine, Lucas, Alan, Vincent, Daniel, William,
Adam, Marouane, Roland, Valentin, Bruni, Yanis, Roman, Ogto, Minseo, Rolli
