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Show Report

Show Report: Calvin Klein A/W 13 Menswear

by Lou Stoppard on 13 January 2013

Lou Stoppard reports on the Calvin Klein A/W 13 menswear show.

Lou Stoppard reports on the Calvin Klein A/W 13 menswear show.

Italo Zucchelli's unique selling point is his way with textures. His passion for anything technical means that there's a natural modernity to his clothing. He pushed this one step further for Autumn/Winter 2013 by designing minimal, futuristic clothing that combined traditional tailoring with sportswear.

These were looks for urban warfare. Structured pocketed parkas, quilted gilets and sweatshirts with mesh panels resembled armour – indeed, the models could have been a tribe of Hunger Games trainees. A decidedly dark palette of black, grey, navy and oxblood reinforced the moody vibe of the collection, while focusing attention on innovative techniques and fabrics.

As all good designers should when at a big, iconic label, Zucchelli has brought aspects from the past along with him when exploring the future. So ultra-techy techniques employed traditional motifs like hound’s-tooth and stripes. This was most successful on Zuchelli’s sporty sweaters, which looked bulky as well as beautiful thanks to graphic chevron detailing. 

While this collection was consistent with the direction that Zucchelli has already been marking out for Calvin Klein, these clothes were almost too futuristic and robotic. At points they looks more like mechanical sculptures than menswear. While they were visually intriguing, it would be very telling to see how many men identify with the pieces, beyond the highly commercial designs. They appeared too removed from this world, like the clothes of another age or generation. It's sad, but Zucchelli’s clean, technical vision may be just that little bit too futuristic for these times.

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