FRANCE / Paris: See What Paris Menswear Has to Offer | Modem Mag

Discover a selection of independent men's designers spotted in Paris during the Spring/Summer 2016 menswear season.

PIGALLE
Stephane Ashpool opened his PIGALLE store in 2008, creating a new destination for cutting-edge clothing in Paris. The brand takes its name from the popular area on the right bank of Paris, where Ashpool grew up. Conceived more as a lifestyle expression rather than as a commercial fashion label, PIGALLE reflects Ashpool’s passion for basketball, craftsmanship, and 90’s flavored street-wear. The brand is strictly connected to Pain O choKolat’s creative universe — Ashpool’s crew that runs many cultural projects, such as club nights and music performances around Paris. Recent collaborations and endorsements by musicians and fashion companies, such as the American rapper A$AP Rocky and Nike, have put PIGALLE in the limelight. PIGALLE is one of the five brands selected to compete for the main prize of the 2015 ANDAM Award.

Julian Zigerli
Swiss designer Julian Zigerli graduated from the University of Arts in Berlin, before returning to his roots in Zurich in order to launch his eponymous label. Enjoying both local and international attention ever since, Zigerli has presented his collections all over the world, including Paris, New York and Seoul, among others fashion capitals. He has been nominated for multiple international fashion awards and won the Swiss Design Award twice, in 2012 and in 2014. In 2013, Zigerli caught the attention of Giorgio Armani, who decided to support the up-and-coming designer by hosting his fashion show at his Teatro Space during Milan Men’s Fashion Week. Zigerli is renowned for his bold design visions, expressed through vibrant hues, experimental prints and outstanding silhouettes. His interest in contemporary art led him to collaborate with several artists, such German artist Katharina Grosse, known for her airbrush paintings, who featured her work in his Spring / Summer 2014 collection. With their playful taste and outstanding creativity, Julian Zigerli's collections are a fresh alternative to classic menswear.

Christian Dada
Christian Dada is is a Tokyo-based up-and-coming womenswear and menswear label — the brainchild of Japanese designer Masanori Morikawa. Morikawa designer has enjoyed a rapid rise to fame since his brand’s inception in 2010, and has been drawing the attention of an international audience of press and buyers through his many presentations in Paris and Tokyo that express his edgy aesthetics, which are imbued with a dark sensibility and avant-garde Goth elements. In this sense, Christian Dada fuses underground aesthetics from Japanese subcultures with classic craftsmanship, such as elaborated quilting and hand-embroidery in order to provide both, style and wearability.

Each x Other
Each x Other was founded in 2013 by Ilan Delouis and Jenny Mannerheim. Inspired by a poem written by Robert Montgomery, a Scottish contemporary artist, the duo decided to set up a collaborative brand in order to invite artists, designers and craftsmen to design exclusive collections and models for their collections. The brand pays homage to androgyny and plays with natural fabrics, basic colorings and minimal fits and shapes, in order to create a timeless look. Each x Other was on the official schedule of Paris Ready-to-Wear last March and, debuted its menswear line in Paris, for the Spring/Summer 2016 season. Graphic prints, paintings, poems and imagery created by a creative community that nurture Each x Other’s spirit continue to define the brand’s signature style, while promoting the unique relationship between art and fashion.

Umit Benan
After studying at the Marangoni Institute in Milan, followed by London’s Central Saint Martins and New York’s Parsons, Turkish designer Umit Benan can count on a solid background in fashion design. In 2008, he launched his own line of men’s ready-to-wear, and worked as a creative director for Trussardi, from 2011 to 2013. Umit Benan’s nonchalant elegance and luxurious fits immediately met the taste of the international fashion scene. His effortless yet refined style got extremely popular in Japan, where he received the award for the 2012 Best International Menswear Brand. Umit Benan has been presenting his collections in Paris, and has been featured in the official schedule of Paris Men’s Fashion Week since 2013. Umit Benan is one of the five brands selected to compete for the main prize of the 2015 ANDAM Award.

STRATEAS.CARLUCCI
STRATEAS.CARLUCCI , the brainchild of Mario-Luca Carlucci and Peter Strateas, is an up-and-coming Australian brand renowned for its androgynous designs. Established by the Melbourne-based designer-duo in 2012, STRATEAS.CARLUCCI has been presenting its collection in Paris to a selected number of buyers and journalists since its inception. The designers’ boundary-pushing textile innovation, as well as their sensitive incorporation of industrial elements and sharp tailoring, has won them many accolades. In 2014, the brand was awarded with the prestigious Tiffany & Co National Design Award, and with the GQ Designer of the Year. Furthermore, the brand has been shortlisted to represent Australia in both the menswear and womenswear editions of the International Woolmark Prize.

Andrea Crews
Andrea Crews is a Paris-based fashion collective and creative agency founded by Maroussia Rebecq in 2001. Conceived as a bridge between art and fashion, the brand brings together artists, stylists, illustrators, musicians, photographers, and film directors to produce one-of-a-kind fashion items and expressed through performances, happenings and videos. The brand’s experimental take on street-wear attracted successful collaborations with big fashion companies, such as Lacoste and Nike. In addition, Andrea Crews constantly interferes with public spaces, art centers, and galleries, and thereby pushes its own boundaries in a playful way. Andrea Crews integrated the official schedule of Paris Fashion Week last Fall, with a special presentation supported by French car manufacturer Opel.