Patrick Michael Hughes Senior Fashion Editor Men's Fashion Writer
Bottega Veneta's Creative Director Matthieu Blazy is furthering fashion beyond simply the post COVID return. His Pre-Spring 2023 collection is a look into a future where there is the continuing promise of luxury and new direction about how to dress now. The designer has had a flourishing fashion career working with designers such as Raf Simons, Maison Martin Magiela, Céline, and Calvin Klein. He was appointed Creative Director of the luxury Italian brand last year.
Blazy's collection possesses strong silhouettes taking full advantage of the craft legacy, known vocabulary and the invisible branding of the house. It also happens to be the recently announced media direction of the company. Bottega Veneta clients will recognize stealth luxuries such as complete leather looks and clothing highlighting the exclusively trained leather workmanship of La Scuola dei Maestri Pelletteri di Bottega Veneta. The Pre-Spring 2023 season features generously cut double breasted stances in warm monochromatic tones and polished black hues. Tailored leather pants, crape joggers and a utility items with multiple seams, bungee cords and two way zippers all contributed to an overall inflection of a new formality that can be effortlessly assimilated into the a higher end wardrobe.
The early spring 2023 season's outerwear transitions from shearling most notably in a long coat making bold graphic statement in black and white to leather jackets and bold ticking textures and plaid coats. The collection firmly asserts that stylish outerwear for the forthcoming season is a key direction for a pulled together dressing.
One of most modern are the designer's almost minimalist take on a waist length jacket in a military blue color. The style highlights the shape of the season's notable trouser silhouette featured in leather. It's a full cut with a number of variations in not only fabric from leather to wool and denim it also continues the ongoing menswear conversation about trouser hemlines. There are ankle grazing length trousers to fully fashioned straight legs with a full break to a tailored style with no break with knife crease finishes pairing well with a two button double breasted sports jackets.
Collars and lapels in the collection, have to be mention when looking at the 2023 earliest season offering. The full, dressy notch cut look is a noteworthy fashion which has been hailing form Europe and London for the past few seasons. It's a generous cut balanced by strong shoulders highlighting the sophistication seen in luxury textile and textures. The items that are fitted are the knits with geometric and graphic patterns and a full brushed fabrication in a chevron.
The topcoats in the collection are finally tailored, knee grazing, double breasted styles which add an distinctive note of formality to the matching pattern ensembles and revival neon items such as texture trousers with an athletic feel. The overall effect and styling is an instrument of instruction of how to balance trend and classics .
Utility and service inspired looks in this case are office ready, they are examples of creative formality in a variety textures from pinstripe suiting inspired material to gray. Similarly the suits and jackets in this collection are an expressive and worthwhile investment. The silhouette has style longevity which will provide a 'wealth' and classic expression for the fashion articulate client's modern wardrobe.
The power is also in the details Bottega Veneta aka 'Venetian Shop' is known for their accessories with a focus on the identifiable 'Intrecciato' weave an aspect of which Matthieu Blazy included as a shoulder detail in one of the outwear pieces. The fashion news is the enormous oversize bag.... in terms of shoes highly polished open toe slides and workwear inspired boots in luxury colors. Neckties were also featured in this collection...
This was beautiful collection from the brand and a luxurious spark of hope toward an advanced modern movement in dress approaching the quarter century.
