LOEWE Men’s FW23 or the importance of the power of silhouettes

A reductionist act. An emphasis on materiality that emphasizes the importance of the silhouette. A color palette also reduced, based on materials and how they react to light. All this and much more is what LOEWE Men’s FW23 has been.

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Parchments, velvet, copper, steel, leather, satin or wool, the same materials used or represented by the ancient masters of painting. Also the same angel wings. Capture a moment and movement in real time, using traditional means of non-traditional forms.

Shapes are molded, folded, frozen, adapted. A line is drawn, a fold is caught. A statement of the pieces -the coat, the trench coat, the cardigan, the crew neck top, the fitted suit- and the underwear. Oversized bags, round toe boots and lace-up shoes. The outline and what fills it. The new and flexible expression that introduces the Puzzle Tote bag to the iconic Puzzle shape.

The interest in the ancient master is exalted and reflected in the dialogue with the American artist Julien Nguyen (b. 1990). Nguyen’s use of copper and vellum as a base for his paintings, his combination of traditional means such as oil, temperature, gesso, encausto and silver tip, guide the choice of materials. At the same time, his visual references to early Renaissance painting and science fiction define the iconography of the collection, enhancing the reductionist act.

Julien Nguyen created three original works of art for LOEWE in which he represents, with intense devotion, his usual model and muse Nikos.

The miniature portrait, created for the invitation, refers to a drawing of the personification of Prudhon’s fortune and is made in a style reminiscent of the Elizabethan miniature portraits of Nicholas Hilliard. The image, intricately detailed, is full of hidden meanings such as the Latin phrase ‘Ubi Amor, Ubi Oculus’ by Thomas Aquinas which translates as ‘where there is love, there is vision’.

The two large-scale digital images created for the presentation show Nikos in scenes taken with few moments of difference in time. His body is inscribed with signs and symbols that reflect on the power of love and is captured in a situation of domestic intimacy.