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Calvin Klein: Elegant as Ever, but a Trifle Too Predictable
By: Godfrey Deeny
Photos by Gruber-FWD
Milan, Jun 28, 2002/FWD/ --- Though he remains one of fashion's most modern designers,
the men's collection Calvin Klein showed Wednesday in Milan had an air of familiarity about it.
The spring/summer 2003 line he presented in his European headquarters had plenty of fine
clothes in it and a great deal of merchandise to make retailers happy, but little of what
appeared on the runway had any sense of the new, except perhaps in the choice of fabrics.
There was a neat all-white opening, with the standout a perfectly cool, slim-fitted four-pocket
safari jacket.
Calvin played with transparency cleverly early on with semi see-through cottons and gauzy
sweaters.
As ever there wasn't a print within a mile of the Klein runway, but instead some neat, almost
effeminate coloring with lots of lilac, violet and yachting blue.
Klein is nothing if not an assured colorist.
The designer's freshest idea was a series of hooded looks with cut-off sleeves in stiff
techno fabrics, but there was too much of a late-'90s Jil Sander look to them.
He finished with some great lean laser-cut leathers, seersucker jackets and mono-color suits.
But again, the decision to pair the last of these with pink matching ties and shirts only
highlighted the sense of already-seen.
In short, plenty of business sense in this collection, one will agree, but not enough
bright new ideas.
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