On Tuesday night, models came shimmying and shaking down the runway to show off the University of Westminster’s 2024 MA Menswear graduate collections. Using elastic and pulled drawstrings, AJ Samuel wrapped and draped ’40s-inspired Burton suits, shirting and formalwear around the body, seemingly enveloping it in a tender embrace.
Subverting classical tailoring fabrics like wools and crisp cottons, denim pieces and exposed underwear elastics referenced ‘90s hip-hop, a cornucopia that acted as a powerful comment on what clothing is considered respectable and why.Leopard print coats with feathery fur collars were worn over sexy, skin-tight Lurex tops and pants printed with Qin dynasty-era dragons in effervescent eggplants, turquoises and magentas.
Titled “Foresta d’Argento,” or silver forest, the designer described his attraction to the metallic as a good luck charm: “A friend told me silver brings more to men than gold, so ever since then I’ve been wearing it,” adding that he’s noticed a positive shift since.Using mainly upcycled fabrics like deadstock cotton waxed ripstop and recycled nylon as his mediums, the designer engineered wide-leg trousers and skirts as well as boxy shirts and jackets that floated around the body.