PARIS — The curtain fell and the disco ball rose to celebrate 38 years and 150 collections of Dries Van Noten, who held his final show Saturday at Paris Fashion Week. The Belgian fashion maestro, a member of the influential “Antwerp Six” known for his innovative and unexpected elegance, announced his retirement in March of this year.
Meanwhile, golden feathers cascaded over the hidden faces of models at Loewe for a show that evoked sartorial myths and fantasies. She set the stage for a more restrained collection this season by Northern Irish designer Jonathan Anderson, but one that continued to mix fantasy with couture.
Here are some of the highlights from Saturday’s spring 2025 men’s fashion shows:
His departure marks the end of an era. To the sound of “I Feel Love” by Donna Summer, Dries Van Noten made his final curtain call in a warehouse in northern Paris, in front of an 8-meter-high disco ball, commanding a dazzling silver catwalk that ended Act. as the setting for his swan song: his 150th show.
Van Noten is one of the famous ‘Antwerp Six’ designers, including Ann Demeulemeester, who trained at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp in the early 1980s and had a major impact on global fashion. His career, spanning five decades since his first menswear line in 1986, has been marked by a fusion of familiar and unfamiliar elements, creating a sense of surprise and poetry in his collections. He is revered throughout the fashion industry for his unique aesthetic.
It’s no surprise that fashion’s great and good, including Diane von Fürstenberg, Thom Browne and Pierpaolo Piccioli, attended the event to celebrate her career.
Saturday night’s collection shined. It was a varied exhibition that played freely with the theme of concluding or exposing. Known for his innovative use of fabrics and textures, Van Noten showed off plenty of sparkle and disco shine.
It was all about the fabrics. He employed semi-transparent crinkled polyamide that resembles glass and “unilateral sheets that shift, like a liquid, between silver and gold.” This artful manipulation of fabric resulted in a spring show that balanced playful and somber styles, as wisps of the fragile silver runway floated in the air, almost weightless.
Van Noten also incorporated a traditional Japanese marbling technique called suminagashi, which dates back 1,000 years. This method involves floating ink in water and then transferring it to the material, creating unique organic patterns. Here, foliage and floral prints evoked fireworks exploding against the night sky.
Throughout his career, Van Noten has been celebrated for making historical and subcultural references. This final show was no exception, seamlessly integrating disco influences with their unique take on modern gender-fluid masculinity. A sheer, almost shabby pink trench coat captured the faint silhouette of the male model’s bare arm in a subtle hiding trick.
Also on display was Van Noten’s mastery of unexpected color combinations, including saturated mixes like a combination of pink, green and deep burgundy. His ability to juxtapose formal and casual wear, such as pairing long double-breasted suits with fun, bright pieces, highlighted his signature style.
As the 66-year-old takes his final bow, the fashion world reflects on the legacy of a designer who continually pushed boundaries, redefined elegance and brought a distinctive Belgian touch to the world stage.
Moments of poetry abounded, as always. A stiff sleeveless pearl vest and another armor-like vest, almost sculptural in their presence, shone like iridescent fish. Anderson’s talent for what he calls creating “collaged reality” was once again on display for spring, fusing artistic content with high-end fashion.
The generous draping and ruching on pants and scarves showcased fine fashion design with elegantly swirling curves, all conceived with a light, minimalist touch. This was Anderson at his best, creating sculptural, exaggerated silhouettes that are now a hallmark of his tenure at Loewe. The deceptive lightness and fluidity of cottons, wools and leathers marked his continuous exploration of materiality.
The tailored suit and pants, pillars of an office job, were touchstones that contrasted sharply with the moments of fantasy.
Even here, the styles were treated with Anderson’s trademark off-kilter eye and loose, generous proportions.
The elongated belts were double vision, while the patent leather Oxford shoes would have been ready for Wall Street, if not for the surreally long, fairy-tale toe that Rumpelstiltskin might have worn. Was Anderson trying to conjure up the dream of a bored municipal worker? This fusion of the mundane and the fantastical is an Anderson trademark. Spring was another example of his ability to use clothing as a medium to explore broader cultural themes and appeal to crowds, including actor Jeff Goldblum and film director Pedro Almodóvar.
Asian wrap styles and sumptuous turban hats combined with the buttons and epaulet details of military dress created a distinctively avant-garde atmosphere for avant-garde designer Kiko Kostadinov’s latest collection. The nuanced incorporation of pastels, often with soft color blocking in the outfits, gave the collection a vibrant yet subtle harmony, reflecting Kostadinov’s ability to mix unlikely elements.
The unusual pastel tones made this collection sing. Kostadinov often uses vibrant hues to create eye-catching outfits.
Other styles featured high, round necks that seemed to evoke Star Trek, adding a futuristic touch. Kostadinov has a penchant for integrating elements of science fiction and fantasy into his designs, as seen in previous collections inspired by cinematic and bookish themes.
In fact, one look (a striking industrial-style jacket and pants) featured surreal motifs of alien life forms or underwater creatures. These fun but disturbing details continued, resembling microscopic bacteria adorning a ’70s-style pastel striped shirt and pants.
Loose, relaxed silhouettes, utilitarian details and layered styles set the mood from the start at White Mountaineering’s latest menswear show. Designed by Yosuke Aizawa, a Tokyo-based creator who enjoys outdoor adventures and draws inspiration from the hinterland of Nagano Prefecture, this brand embodies the fusion of urban and outdoor clothing, balancing technical function with runway.
The collection began, as expected, in white. Monochromatic reflections gave way to stripes, checks and camouflage, with geometric knit patterns and even a varied ’90s tie-dye overall look.
Factory rompers in beige gave this collection a young and modern vibe, while silky scarves and elegant collars added a touch of elegance.
Aizawa, who divides his time between Tokyo and the wilderness of Nagano, channels his passion for the outdoors into his shows. Her designs reflect her lifestyle, offering garments that feel equally at home in the city or the country.
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