For designers these days, it’s either go historical or political. Joseph Abboud took both routes in his highly stylized and completely nostalgic Fall 2019 Menswear show. Set on New York City’s South Street Seaport Pier 16, his presentation touched on the country’s history of immigration, which currently is a hot button political issue. But instead of focusing on the immigration of today, he ventured into the past and focused on the immigration that made the USA the melting pot of cultures it is today. And so, his men this season are 1900s travelers landing on Ellis Island, complete with Victorian-esque suiting and swiveling capes and fedoras. They donned layers over layers of tailored checks, pinstripes, and wooly pieces that were all traditional wardrobes of the yesteryear’s gentlemen. But while the story behind the show was relevant, the clothes themselves weren’t, at least not fully. In fact, with how they were styled on the models, some might argue that they were borderline costumes for a period film. It was all too much, it needed heaps loads of editing, and it simply didn’t feel contemporary at all. Were they desirable? Yes. But it’s the sort of desirability one sees when checking out a historic artifact of clothing displayed in a museum, not necessarily the type that’ll push a customer to buy the clothes for himself. Though many pieces are bound to sell, we guarantee that men won’t even go near to how they were styled during the show. Lest they’ll look like obnoxious hipsters taking their nostalgia for the past a little too much.
Photo: Alessandro Lucioni / Gorunway.com
