Due to the Olympics, Paris became a two-week non-stop fashion spectacle, with Paris Fashion Week men’s Spring/Summer 2025 seamlessly following couture week. The endless traffic jams, closed metro stations, and overcrowded city weren’t the ideal circumstances for the fast-paced week, but overall, they didn’t spoil the fun. It was a season with contradictions as its central theme. There was Pharrell for Louis Vuitton, creating a one-of-a-kind spectacle like only a celebrity designer could do, the final goodbye by Dries van Noten, Dior’s references to women’s clothing, and Rick Owens’ regret, which led him to stage a show with 200 models. Overall, Paris Fashion Week Men’s Spring/Summer 2025 was a week filled with highs (and some lows, but most didn’t have anything to do with the shows) and the introduction to a softer take on menswear. Cover image: courtesy of the corresponding brands
Also, read: BEST OF PARIS HAUTE COUTURE WEEK FALL/WINTER 2024
PARIS FASHION WEEK MEN’S SPRING/SUMMER 2025
Rick Owens felt significant regrets. In the past seasons, he hadn’t shown at his favorite location, Palais de Tokyo. He opted for smaller, more intimate venues instead. This decision excluded many of his fans, among which the students who used to ‘freeride’ and watch Owens’ show from behind the fences surrounding the museum. He invited 200 fashion students to walk his show, including his loyal fans. Together, they formed his “White Satin Army of Love.” Where Owens usually opts for black, his Spring/Summer 2025 collection consists of white garments. Despite the large number of models, there were only ten looks, all displayed twenty times. In its purest sense, Owens started a conversation about intimacy. He succeeded, looking at the tearful faces in the audience. “We’re trying to give people options to conventional ideas of aesthetics,” the designer explained. “If we can blur the lines and make people consider other things, maybe that can lead to blurring the lines considering how people treat each other.”
Another spectacle with a similar unifying message that attracted massive crowds was the Louis Vuitton menswear show. In the heart of Paris, Vuitton’s Pharrell Williams took over the UNESCO Headquarters with a consolidated message at the core of his collection. He explained that we’re one together, so his collection formed an ode to the collective human experience.
At Dior Homme, Kim Jones tapped into his artistic side. He staged gigantic sculptures by artist Hylton Nel on the runway, an extension of Maria Grazia Chiuri’s usual work style. The clothes were soft; light hues of pink, pale yellows, and beige hues made the collection more delicate than its predecessors.
The same holds for Hermès, where a laidback vibe reigns over the collection. There were horse prints loosely sketched on shirts, the famous horse-bit motif, and delicately dyed tops. They evoked a sense of Southern France’s relaxedness. The house called the collection a “sweet summer, grazed by a gentle breeze, melting into cityscapes, into the horizon.” The allure of freedom was clearly at its core. Just like Dior, Hermès (under the creative direction of Veronique Nichanian) showcased several pink garments. The aquatic color scheme – including blue, ocean, and navy – paints a glimmering inner landscape. Colors talk to each other and listen to board pink, matcha, lychee, biscuit, and chocolate dialogue with ecru, mist, and white.
At Loewe, Jonathan Anderson once again proved he nails the art of thought-provoking concept development with a collection that was just as artistic as the exhibited art pieces. Again, Anderson makes its spectators rethink the norms around dressing: Where should we stick to the familiar, where should we experiment? And is what you see what you get, or do clothes form an optical illusion, creating new bodily shapes? Most of the models’ faces were adorned with big feathers, shying the attention away from their personalities and restraining the eyes’ focus from the face by letting them focus on the clothes instead.
Overall, Paris Fashion Week Men’s Spring/Summer 2025 focused on the softer side. Or at least of (future) wardrobes. Fashion generally either reflects society or forms an antidote to it. Turbulent times ask for specific measures. And this season, designers agreed that those can be found in clothes that are soothing for the eye and the mind.
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