Songzio Men’s Spring 2023
Designer Jay Songzio likes to play with proportion and balance, and did so again this season, showing a bold collection at Paris’ American Cathedral. With the grand, Gothic setting and Dante’s “Inferno” as inspiration, Songzio could have mined all sorts of dark historical references. Instead he kept his cool using bright watercolors of aqua and sea-foam and an industrial, fluorescent strobe-effect sheen to freshen up his usual palette of black and gray, and deftly bridged South Korean references with modern tailoring.
There were glossy rain jackets and dramatic billowing capes made from parachute material, and mullet-style coats that combined the two.
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Chopped and cropped, the sharply cut blazers had asymmetric edges, though Songzio told WWD that many pieces come in sets to mix and match — a blazer and an inner vest of opposite proportions for example — to give the option of balance and the garment more purpose. Silhouettes were oversized yet structured, while trousers had flow and movement.
“We always work with duality and very stark contrast,” he said. “We took a very classical theme but wanted a futuristic approach.”
Accessories were standouts. Songzio reinterpreted the Korean early 20th-century gomisun rounded-toe shape into chunky boots and sneakers. Sandals played off his bag collection, with delicate strings of leather, and glossy hats added a dreamlike quality to the collection.
Launch Gallery: Songzio Men's Spring 2023
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