Miuccia For The Men - Lighten Up Already!

Suzy Menkes in the International Herald Tribune brings us
Prada's strong, sinister menswear show

And the news isn't good
Unless you like your men dressed like this...

Miuccia Prada's take on the autumn/winter 2009/10 menswear season was strong, striking and sinister. Who were these men who soon appeared peppered with studs, first on their tough shoes, then on the back of the long, straight coats and finally close to the chest, set inside the stripes of a tailored shirt?

"It is about being strong and about Europe - what we have to do to keep holding on to history - and the enclosed space because of feeling the pressure of everything we have to deal with," said the enigmatic Prada backstage.

What is it about Prada that sets her light years ahead of the rest?
It is the thought process - the way she appears to embrace the current world, so that the mind's eye sees the new President Barack Obama in the long slim silhouette and the Russian oil mongers in the studded boots, although there is never an overt suggestion of these realities.
The shows, therefore, become intensely political, yet, when broken down to a sweater, a shirt or a tough-man bag, are just offering enticing modern fashion. When it comes to ideas, Prada is certainly not running on empty.

Miuccia Prada is certainly not running on empty

but I don't want to go to wherever her vision is leading us.