Vetements. Men's Fall 2020 - Paris Fashion Week

Images from the designer and the public domain. Credited to the photographer/company where applicable: Gorunway.com)

Vetements under its ethos as anti-fashion is more or less encapsulating a style that has formulated from an emerging street look of the last couple of years, yet it is not entirely responsible for it, the trend has been hard to pinpoint the exact origins, but its accumulation of aesthetics relates to the want and desire for designer essentials as a motivation, however to be sourced from the thrift and recycled shop trades.  A retail network, to what is deemed as vintage designer wares, from the last three decades has emerged into a chain of buyers and sellers of designer labels.  It is slow fashion consumption, but without too much of the ethics attached – rather an adjusted purchasing power, as the West have less change in their pockets than the Chinese, whose desire for designer items is showing no signs of slowing down.  

Vetements is a young brand, evolving in 2014, pieced together very cleverly by brothers Guram and Demna Gvasalia, born of Georgian heritage and growing up in one of the most innovative and grounded fashion scenes of Europe, Demna, the older of the two brothers, has recently split from his family affair and is now holding the creative reigns of Balenciaga, which is understandable.  Traversing over to a more corporate entity, since Vetements sweeping success with its brand name, production and runway concepts that toyed with the 'backlash' of fashion.  The Gvasalia influence, now can be seen on the older and larger fashion houses such as Balenciaga (please refer to my Balenciaga resort 2020 review).  Guram has continued on with Vetements, running it, at least on paper as a cooperative idea of loose business and incorporated semantics, yet if a brand, like Vetements are to maintain significance within the fashion world, the hosting of shows via the Paris Fashion Week timeline would still require a business shrewdness.  To which Vetements can after their Spring 2015 debut at PFW, afford to offer its antithesis of fashion whilst selling onto exclusivity.  

For Guram's Fall 2020 styles, set within a car park lot, within its minimal lighting and back the basics of do-it-yourself presentations, to which Vetements have mastered over the 5 years of the brand's creation, as opposed to previous collections, the tailoring is expectational.  There is no doubt, despite the Thrift 'look' styles, Gvasalia has up the ante with his skills and this can be clearly seen in the cuts and fits of the Vetements latest collection.  With some of the sloganeering and catchphrases toned back, yet the basic theatrics remain (look alike celebrity models and garish appeal).  The raw Tbilisi, Georgian element can be felt with this collection and this is what makes Vetements showpiece even more enticing, as the final product is revealed in its quality.

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(A.Glass 2020)