Yesterday in Paris, for his second menswear collection at Balenciaga, Demna Gsavalia debuted the spring/summer 2018 collection. In the great outdoors of the Bois de Boulogne, the house’s runway show took place—a very different beginning for Balenciaga already. The change of scenery couldn’t have led guests into a more transitional state, as when the looks passed by down the strip of a forest, onlookers were prepared for a change in direction.
Balenciaga dressed the “cool dad”—according to the show notes, “young dads in the park with their kids at the weekend.” During the show, several of the models walked with kids, offering a window into the family side of their lives.
Balenciaga SS18.Courtesy of Balenciaga.
Pants were broken up into sections, with the upper-leg, mid-leg, and lower-leg seen in varying materials. Elongated leather coats (some plain, others with sayings like “The Power of Dreams”) joined large-fit blazers, puffer coats, windbreakers (some see-through, others in opaque colors), and denim jackets with a clear sleeve over it with the exclamation “Europa!” Dad jeans came back for the day in a variety of light and dark washed to short- and long-sleeved match button-downs, and round-toe leather shoes were seen in go-to tones like black, brown, blue, and red. We even caught sight of the new Balenciaga bike, which will exclusively be available at Colette.
Balenciaga SS18.Courtesy of Balenciaga.
Balenciaga SS18.Courtesy of Balenciaga.
