At Hermès, Woven Leather and Quiet Confidence Set the Tone for Paris Menswear
While much of Paris Fashion Week chased spectacle, Hermès chose a different path. On Saturday, artistic director Véronique Nichanian unveiled a Summer 2026 men's collection that spoke in a language of quiet strength, deep craft, and calm luxury.
Models walked beneath soaring mirrors in sharply cut jackets, high-waisted woven leather trousers, and sleeveless tops–pieces that fused house tradition with a modern, easy sensuality. Nichanian's colors were cool and exact: coffee, slate, taupe, and beige, each one a lesson in subtlety. There was no shouting here, only precision.
What made the collection powerful was its restraint. Where others go wide, Hermès goes narrow–offering tailored silhouettes and a sense of order when the rest of fashion is busy making noise. Fine leather, featherlight silks, and bandanas with a whisper of fringe reminded the crowd that true luxury is about touch, not flash.
Nichanian's playful touches–zigzag motifs, the wink of an unbuttoned shirt, a glint of silver hardware–kept things human, not stiff. It was a masterclass in how to make classic codes feel new, even radical, simply by refusing to chase trends.
In a season marked by designer shake-ups and economic jitters, Hermès stood alone: confident, focused, and unwilling to compromise. As Nichanian took her bow to cheers, she sent a clear message–at Hermès, luxury is about the pleasure of the wearer, not the applause of the crowd.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
3 hours ago
- Arab News
Amira Al-Zuhair walks for AWGE in Paris
DUBAI/PARIS: Saudi French model Amira Al-Zuhair hit the runway at the AWGE show as part of Paris Men's Fashion Week. For the latest updates, follow us on Instagram @ The 24-year-old model showed off an ensemble featuring a trench coat layered over a white vest and tartan-style miniskirt by A$AP Rocky's label. Rapper-designer A$AP Rocky's second fashion show was attended by his long-term partner Rihanna, who sat front row with their son Riot. His sophomore collection, titled 'Obligatory Clothing,' was just (about) how you take the simple uniform or the purpose of a uniform, and how people correlate that to profession, lifestyle and everything,' Rocky said after the show, according to WWD. The show was a riot of color, with its precision tailoring praised by a number of fashion critics. It came as colors ran wild and silhouettes softened at Paris Men's Fashion Week, which ended Sunday, as designers brought a rare breath of fresh air to a gloomy fashion climate. Despite the economic turbulence affecting the luxury sector, this Fashion Week was a 'shot of creativity that felt incredibly good,' Alice Feillard, men's buying director at Galeries Lafayette, told AFP. The Spring/Summer 2026 season 'is much more creative than the previous ones, which were a bit duller', said Adrien Communier, the fashion editor at GQ France. Both experts observed a more relaxed vibe, with Feillard pointing to 'good humor' and 'optimism,' while Communier noted a 'lighter mood.' 'With so many debuts, there was a sense of renewal. And so, I found that people were more curious,' he added. After a notable women's show in March, Julian Klausner made waves Thursday with his first menswear show for Dries Van Noten, while Jonathan Anderson's long-awaited debut at Dior drew applause on Friday. A renewed burst of creativity lit up the runways, most visibly through bold color choices. Brown tones and pastels made way for a richer, more saturated palette for next summer. Saint Laurent opened the week with violet, navy, orange and moss green, while Pharrell Williams at Louis Vuitton channeled Indian motifs and hues. Dries Van Noten made a splash with bold fuchsia and blood red, while Kenzo exploded with candy pink, aquatic blue and chick yellow.
Asharq Al-Awsat
4 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
'Cezanne at Home': Show Retraces Artist's Roots in Southern France
A city in southern France is celebrating its most famous local painter Paul Cezanne with an exhibition showcasing his works inspired by the sun-drenched landscapes of the Provence region. Paintings by Cezanne, created in his hometown of Aix-en-Provence and at his family estate, went on display Saturday at the Granet Museum in the city for the over three-month exhibition, which is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of visitors. The theme of the exhibit is "Cezanne at home," said the city's mayor Sophie Joissains, said AFP. The vivid southern French countryside provided most of the inspiration for Cezanne's works, composed mainly of still lifes and landscapes. But the artist, known as one of the fathers of modern art, was hated by critics and shunned by his native city during his life and even years after his death. "As long as I live, no Cezanne will enter the museum," then-conservator of the Granet Museum Henri Pontier promised after Cezanne died in 1906. For decades, "a modest copy of a classic male nude, made during his studies, was the only work of Cezanne's in the museum of his city," said Bruno Ely, current director of the museum and the exhibit's curator. The century-long rift between Cezanne and his native city came to an end in 2006 when the Granet Museum held its first exhibition of the artist's work. The city has since declared 2025 "Cezanne's Year," organizing a series of events celebrating his work and leaving any historical estrangement firmly in the past. The "Cezanne au Jas de Bouffan" (Cezane at the Jas de Bouffan) exhibit displays 135 paintings, drawings and etchings, originating from museums and collectors from over a dozen different countries. The evolution of Cezanne's painting style will be on display, from his earlier darker works featuring thick paint spread with a palette knife to impressionism to a pre-cubist style. Though the Provence region where Cezanne roamed was "tiny," it was "enough for him to reinvent painting", said Ely. The exhibition comes alongside major restoration efforts at the three-storey Jas de Bouffan manor home, where the Cezanne family lived in the late 19th century. Young Cezanne adorned the estate's living room with colorful frescos, perhaps with the intention of impressing his banker father, who had wanted his son to be a lawyer or a financer. The exhibition runs to October 12.
Asharq Al-Awsat
11 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
At Hermes, Woven Leather and Quiet Confidence Set the Tone for Paris Menswear
While much of Paris Fashion Week chased spectacle, Hermes chose a different path. On Saturday, artistic director Véronique Nichanian unveiled a Summer 2026 men's collection that spoke in a language of quiet strength, deep craft and calm luxury. Models walked beneath soaring mirrors in sharply cut jackets, high-waisted woven leather trousers, and sleeveless tops — pieces that fused house tradition with a modern, easy sensuality. Nichanian's colors were cool and exact: coffee, slate, taupe and beige, each one a lesson in subtlety. There was no shouting here, only precision. What made the collection powerful was its restraint. Where others go wide, Hermes goes narrow, offering tailored silhouettes and a sense of order when the rest of fashion is busy making noise. Fine leather, featherlight silks, and bandanas with a whisper of fringe reminded the crowd that true luxury is about touch, not flash. Nichanian's playful touches — zigzag motifs, the wink of an unbuttoned shirt, a glint of silver hardware — kept things human, not stiff. It was a masterclass in how to make classic codes feel new, even radical, simply by refusing to chase trends. In a season marked by designer shake-ups and economic jitters, Hermes stood alone: confident, focused, and unwilling to compromise. As Nichanian took her bow to cheers, she sent a clear message — at Hermes, luxury is about the pleasure of the wearer, not the applause of the crowd.
