They’ve been on the Paris scene long enough to no longer qualify as emerging, yet to call them established doesn’t seem accurate either.
It’s always interesting to see how French brands appropriate distinctly American imagery; here, for instance, the looks came across as arty and eclectic, rather than diluted by clichés. They reached out to Los Angles–based painter Henry Taylor, whose works filled the entire surface of two silk blouses and felt as current as any print or pattern seen elsewhere this week. Elsewhere, the bandana pattern that looked so polished as various allover looks was customized to include the European Union stars—call it a subtle gesture of fashion diplomacy. While embroidered auto flames now feel too close to Prada, the guys showed their street cred with a cameo from Karl Kani: The self-professed “originator of urban fashion” has cosigned some of the logo items and his ‘90s-era-defining baggy pants made a comeback here in camo print, bright colors, and railroad stripes. “We really wanted to bring back the products that influenced us,” said Arbet.