Paris relaxes with Doublet and Taak, in the Japanese conquest

Last but not least, a great collection by Takuya Morikawa of Taak, the final show of Parisian menswear, and a reminder that the dominant wave in menswear today is Japanese.

Presented at the Tokyo Palace before just 500 guests, it was an excellent collection that connected Western tailoring; Japanese poise and totally unexpected uses of lace and guipure.

Their putty-gray silk suits were adorned with architectural motifs: acanthus or ivy leaves; while her iridescent satin trench coats were finished with three-dimensional lace, fauna and swirls.

All done in monocolors: lichen, cement, burnt beige and silvery white. Often semi-transparent and cut with sophisticated classicism.

Before the show, Morikawa's show notes were the most informative of the season. They revealed that the theme was 'Yo-fuku', or mixing Western-style fashion with Japanese sensibility.

“As an island nation, Japan's culture has developed in a unique way. In the last years of the 19th century, Japan was driven towards modernization with strong influences from the West, thus incorporating Western culture, lifestyles and values ​​into daily life,” Morikawa argued.

How different is the current European appreciation of Japan, compared to its current competitive relationship with China! And how different the impact on fashion internationally.

Because while Paris men's fashion week has rarely seemed more disparate, its biggest influence is now Japanese designers. People like Yohji, Rei, and Junya, and the new generation of Chitose, Jun, and most of all, Takuya.

The Paris menswear season ended on Sunday with Doublet followed by Hermès, joining a haute couture audience, presenting its fine jewels at the Louvre.

See catwalk

Due to the Olympics, both the menswear and haute couture seasons have become exceptionally crowded through June. Allow Hermès, a smart clan, to organize a men's fashion show in maritime mode on Saturday and a jewelry show on Sunday night.

The fine jewelry or fine jewelry, as its designer Pierre Hardy prefers to call it, was quite remarkable. Who else would create a diamond and sapphire mini Birkin bag that one could wrap around the torso or wear as a clutch than Hardy and Hermès? But more on that later this week.

Two worlds apart are Hermès and Doublet, a youthful and fun exhibition that takes place inside a high school on rue de Turbigo, near Republique. The traditional nerve center of the left in French politics and therefore a center of much activity currently with the next French parliamentary elections scheduled for the end of June. A spectacle in the face of the threat of a far-right party gaining power in France for the first time since the Second World War. The period in which the collaborationist government of Marshal Petain was in power.

When it comes to fashion, founder Masayuki Ino definitely has a point of view. The winner of the LVMH Grand Prix of 2018 mixes Japanese street with Midwestern rock. It is not always an ideal mix. In fact, the results are often decidedly contradictory.

But their mohair crewnecks that say “I'm obsessed”; or tight pink cotton t-shirts that said “I love protein fiber” were great.

All in all, it's not a grand fashion statement, but a graphic collection that was another trumpet call from Japan that now owns menswear.