NYC’s First Men’s Fashion Week: Cadet, Boyswear, GARCIAVELEZ, and David Hart

In Industria Superstudios’ multi-level megahouse, Cadet, Boyswear, GARCIAVELEZ, and David Hart presented their new collection, and allowed for a fashionable morning to be remembered. All of the designers had separate rooms, and live models were positioned to show off new styles for the months to come.

Cadet marched forward with a nod to the U.S. Army’s paratroopers by debuting “The Filthy 13”—their rough-and-tumble spring/summer 2016 collection. Natural tones of olive green, slate gray, rustic blue, and light tan were seen on nearly all of their short trench jackets, tank tops, shorts, and vests. Throughout the entire presentation, a talented singer and drummer performed a lively performance for models and onlookers alike to enjoy.

Boyswear’s spring/summer 2016 collection was titled “The Manson Family Singers” and took on a recreation of California’s psychedelic past of the 1960s. There were nods to The Sound of Music, and there were even reminders of a traditional Tyrolean costume. Our favorite look was playful navy blue tee shirt with a blue and pink ombre big cat displaying daises for eyes.

CWST also gave a more natural presentation with blue, black, and gray tones. Loosely woven shorts, linen blazers, and layers of tanks and tops made a simple yet oh-so-classy statement for the summer.

GARCIAVELEZ put forth a sophisticated spin on florescence, and explored vibrant blue depths throughout the entirety of his “Lucent Stasis” collection. Inspiration for the collection came from wanting to explore the ideas of reflecting, concealing, diffusing, and capturing the ephemeral qualities of light. “I wanted to experiment with how to suspend the temporal quality of light within the garment,” said founder Carlos Garciavelez. “The challenge for me was to capture a finite quality of an incandescent source and how that relates to the human body.” Garciavelez references two art installations—Dan Flavin’s light installation from 1996 and Donald Judd’s 100 untitled works in mill aluminum from 1982-1986—and manifests neon-centric lines, patterns, and other subtle details to make the collection truly pop.

And last but not least, tucked high in the top of Inustria’s last showroom, David Hart delivered a tremendously radical reason to stop and stay just a little while longer. Geometric prints, primary colors, and sweet flashes of pastels were derived from a variety of inspirations: Germany’s Bauhaus and the artists during its inter-war period; textile artwork by Annie Albers and Gunta Stolz; photography by Lazlo Maholy-Nagy.