Dior unveils a joyful and psychedelic men's collection online

Acidic colors, psychedelic patterns, luxurious extravagance of the costume with new proportions, accessorized with slippers or massive boots: Dior unveiled its autumn 2021 men's collection online Tuesday, opposing joy to the gloom that hangs over this year.

“Joy, happiness and hope”

“When we started the collection, we were coming out of the first confinement and I wanted to bring joy, happiness and hope,” explains Kim Jones, British designer of men's collections from the French luxury house in a video accompanying the presentation of the collection.

This collection that he wanted “fun and light” plays on the gap between the classic silhouettes of Dior and the world of the American artist Kenny Scharf who, in the 80s, had created connections between the world of contemporary art and that of graffiti like Jean-Michel Basquiat or Keith Haring.

"I love the clash of colors - yellow and purple, orange and blue, red and green. When you take the happy and sad opposites and put them together, it creates the tension and excitement that I love," said Kenny Scharf. The motifs of his works are reproduced on jacquard jackets, sweaters or shirts, like a monkey with flowering nipples, but also embroidered on tambourines, those slightly square berets, Christian Dior's favorite headwear.

Knot stitch embroidery, one of the oldest techniques in the world, was performed in China. New on the silhouette side: the abundance of jackets and coats with belts worn with loose, short pants revealing the ankle above bright blue or pink “chunky boots” or slippers, a nod to the global lockdown that boosted loungewear fashion.

The six-button coat revisits the work jacket while the English twill jackets, a fabric used in military uniforms, are decorated with a huge bow at the back.

And the ultimate in luxury, a “double-sided” jacket made up of two pieces superimposed one on top of the other with a slight offset. The scenography of the parade broadcast on the Dior website is designed by the French director Thomas Vanz like a virtual space odyssey. (AFP)

This article was originally published on FashionUnited.FR, translated and edited to English by Kelly Press.

Credit: Dior menswear AW21, © Brett Lloyd