Dior’s Beach Trip, Martens’ Second Gaultier Drop – WWD

SURF’S UP: Dior has teamed up with environmental organization Parley for the Oceans for the second time on its annual men’s beachwear capsule collection.

Their first collaboration last year was honored with the Forbes Green Ecological Transition Prize at the inaugural awards held by Forbes France last October.

“I’m very proud of this second collaboration with Parley for the Oceans. We succeeded in doing a 96 percent eco-responsible collection which is amazing,” said Kim Jones, artistic director of menswear at Dior.

“This capsule is committed and very desirable, it’s a mix of innovation and technical performance but still very elegant,” he said in a statement.

Dior and Parley started a joint research project in 2019, which has resulted in new yarns and fabrics made with upcycled marine plastic debris and fishing gear recovered from coastlines and islands around the world, including the Maldives, Dominican Republic and Sri Lanka.

Dior specified that 59 percent of the items in the collection used ocean plastic in their composition, and 37 percent used fabrics with a certification such as GOTS, which limits the use of toxic bleaches, dyes and other chemical inputs during the production process of textiles.

Working in a palette ranging from coral and lemon to the brand’s signature gray, the teams at Dior used the upcycled alternative to virgin polyester developed by Parley to create fabrics including seersucker and a silky knit, used for mix-and-match pieces such as shorts, pants, T-shirts, polo shirts and sweaters.

Dior said the capsule line reflects its “desire to move toward a more eco-innovative, sustainable future for fashion.” It also chimes with Jones’ personal commitment toward preserving the environment and rare animals.

The collection featured two additional collaborations: with surfwear maker Vissla on wetsuits made from recycled jerseys incorporating 50 percent of recycled cotton, and with French specialist Notox on an eco-responsible surfboard.

Parent company LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton has said that by 2030 all of its new products should result from eco-design — which it described as being produced with a minimal environmental footprint, from the extraction of materials to their transformation.

“Wearing a piece of Dior x Parley is an act of rebellion, it shows that you care dearly. It shows that you want to solve the environmental crisis we are facing in a creative and optimistic way,” said Cyrill Gutsch, chief executive officer and founder of Parley for the Oceans.

“Together with Kim Jones and his fantastic team we have delivered the proof that driving the material revolution is not a sacrifice, but answers to a new desire: to protect the oceans, to protect our climate and to protect our future,” he said.

The collection will be available in Dior stores that carry menswear from mid-May.

SEEING DOUBLE: Y/Project’s Glenn Martens, guest couturier at Jean Paul Gaultier in January 2022, has returned for a second ready-to-wear collaboration, this time focused on prints that give the illusion of garment mash-ups.

The knit-enhanced mesh clothing gives the trompe l’oeil impression of jean jackets spliced with sailor shirts; wader jeans superimposed on narrow skirts, or lacy lingerie floating on slipdresses.

The collection drops on Friday on the e-stores of Jean Paul Gaultier and Y/Project, along with select retailers. Prices range from 320 euros for T-shirts up to 1,290 euros for long, tailored jackets.

The range includes looks for men, from T-shirts banded with a print of belt-encircled jeans to a tailored coat suggesting a pair of briefs and bare legs.

Martens was Jean Paul Gaultier’s second guest couturier, after Sacai’s Chitose Abe, following the founding designer’s retirement from the runway in January 2020.

That was something of a homecoming for Martens, who was recruited by Gaultier shortly after graduating from Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts in 2008 and became junior designer for his women’s pre-collection and the G2 men’s label.

After his high-fashion debut, Martens also turned out a capsule rtw collection, also in the trompe-l’oeil vein. It was based on Gaultier’s spring 1996 “Cyberbaba” collection, and featured various body parts printed on unexpected garments.

One of France’s most iconic and popular fashion figures, Gaultier had the idea of inviting different designers to interpret his couture once he hung up his scissors.

Martens, who is also creative director at Diesel in Italy, likes to tumble together disparate references, from classical tailoring to streetwear to offbeat historical references, including Flemish Old Masters. He is also known for his avant-garde silhouettes that incorporate exaggerated and twisting volumes.

His latest Y/Project collection for fall 2023 included garments made of shredded denim, and other looks where shredded denim appeared as a photo print. — MILES SOCHA

KITH’S LATEST COLLAB: Ronnie Fieg has a new sneaker collaboration in the works. This time, the Kith founder has tapped Adidas and Clarks Originals for a three-way project coming soon.

Fieg shared an image on Twitter yesterday of a Clarks Originals suede hangtag donning his last name, along with Clarks branding and the Adidas Trefoil logo. Fieg is holding multiple iterations of the hangtag, which could indicate multiple iterations of the project are releasing.

At the time of publication, only teaser images of the forthcoming project have been shared. Seen on the feet of the models in Kith’s spring 2023 look book are what appears to be the aforementioned three-way collab in the form of the Samba. The sneakers feature a traditional leather construction on the upper, but swaps out the tooling with Clarks’ crepe sole.

“This assortment of new silhouettes across outerwear, knitwear, activewear and accessories promotes creative layering — elevating any wardrobe. Bespoke textiles including cotton poplin, wool, nylon, Nappa leather and denim allow for flexibility in warmth and texture. The patchwork and pre-treatment wash techniques utilized throughout provide a soft feel with a lived-in appearance. The collection benefits from the Kith palette, featuring rich earth tones inclusive of sage green, burnt orange, deep navy, Pacific blue and deep teal,” Kith wrote for the description of its spring 2023 collection.

Fieg has collaborated with both Adidas and Clarks separately on numerous occasions, most recently with the 8th St. by Ronnie Fieg for Clarks Originals collection in May.

At the time of publication, release details for the three-way Ronnie Fieg x Adidas x Clarks sneaker collab have yet to be announced by any of the parties involved in the project. — VICTOR DENG

SUSTAINABILITY PODCAST: At a sustainable fashion event held Thursday morning, Kering and Marie Claire unveiled the launch of a joint podcast.

A spin-off from the consumer magazine and luxury conglomerate’s partnership that began in June 2022, the “Fashion Our Future” podcast expands on in-person learnings. The Thursday event, which took place in Manhattan, trails an inaugural flagship event that convened in Paris last year, showcasing panel talks, workshops, design expositions and more focused on fashion and sustainability.

After a seated breakfast, media, influencers, industry professionals and students donned plush headphones to sample the sound of rushing streams and songbirds, while seated, ironically, multiple stories above the skyline. A voiceover repeated phrases like: “We’re overconsuming,” or “Isn’t it nice to slow down?”, all underscoring that sustainability necessitates slowing down by principle. The first consumer-geared podcast episode drops Thursday on Spotify.

The news accompanied a handful of panel conversations and precedes further news from Kering. For the first session, Kering’s sustainability head Marie-Claire Daveu spoke of the company’s feat in ditching fur, as well the optimism that drives her profession.

“You don’t work in sustainability if you aren’t optimistic,” underscored Daveu.

The conversation continued with actress Kerry Washington and sustainable designers Brother Vellies founder Aurora James, Angel Chang and Studio 189 cofounder Abrima Erwiah.

Washington, who recently wore an archival Donna Karan dress to the Oscars, said storytellers are the true power wielders in shifting the sustainable fashion narrative. “Real change happens when the message is being delivered in multiple stages in the process. If people are walking down the street and they see a huge [billboard] of what Kering is doing they [can] turn on their phone and scan a QR code, and they walk past the store. People get information in multiple places and understand this is not just a fashionable moment. This is not a trend. This has to be a life shift for the health of our planet.…There are multiple opportunities to contribute to that narrative.”

Erwiah spoke on a panel with Hassan Pierre, cofounder of ethical retailer Maison de Mode, and Natasha Franck, founder of digital supply chain tool Eon. The final conversation was between Fashion Institute of Technology president Joyce F. Brown and sustainable fashion and climate activist Saad Amer.

A selection of sustainability-inclined FIT student designers also showcased their work. These conversations and more are what’s expected of the podcast, though further details were not revealed. — KALEY ROSHITSH