As guests filed their way into the Tennis Club de Paris for the Spring 2014 Dior Homme show, they were greeted by a maze of mirrors, all sharp edges and perfect corners, glinting beckoningly under the afternoon sun. It was an apt setting for the collection, which was all stark lines and clean shapes, mining the vein of progressive modernism that Kris Van Assche has been tapping so successfully during his years at the house. The story at his own show a few days earlier was the rich, eye-popping hues, and the palette here, though more muted, was equally vivid, with gorgeous shades of navy and maroon adding a little energy to the sleek sportswear. There was a bit of a Bauhaus feel to many of the looks, with geometric forms in various fabrics making perfect right angles, the sole decoration in the characteristically minimalist collection. Van Assche worked with a variety of intriguing materials, adding a sturdy heft to Yannick Abrath’s baseball jacket and a soft shimmer to Ian Sharp’s lightweight anorak. The boys wended their way back and forth among the shining mirrors before taking their positions in the labyrinth, offering a crisp, pristine vision of an impeccable purity for next year.
Text by Jonathan Shia
Images by Lea Colombo
