Christopher Shannon’s menswear is so often labelled as sportswear or sports-luxe, but in truth he’s at the forefront of a trend that London excels in which is the exact opposite of suiting, and really comes under another much-abused umbrella term: casualwear. It’s a reaction against the strict formality and subtle detail-oriented approach of suiting, for a generation to whom the idea of wearing an expensive suit is neither appealing nor affordable. Shannon’s point of difference in this set is that he leads the way; each season he presents a fresh spin on his own ideas, twisting his own aesthetic in new directions to put himself at the forefront of the British alt.fashion menswear designers. This time, a rainbow of shiny shorts, sleeveless shirts and sheer latexes showcased a cleaner, sleeker look for Shannon, loose silhouettes harking to acid house ravewear, echoed by some rather superb glittery hair. Liberty-collab florals and Kickers-collab sandal-boot hybrids gave the collection some commercial edge, but AW13 for Chris is all about having fun, and that’s exactly what we want.
Words: Seb Law
