Because the urban terrain can be just as wild and difficult to navigate as the jungles in Brazil, Phillip Lim was out to prove that one need not leave the city to be adventurous. “Who says the city pavement isn’t rugged terrain?” he wrote in the notes for his first-ever men’s runway show. Cast in such autumnal tones as grey, navy, burgundy and sand and set on a custom-poured concrete floor, the strong willed collection, with a touch of Berlin-esque influence, featured a flurry of strong outwear pieces–namely coats boasting sleek leather accents, sharp buttons and shiny-as-can-be zipper details. Leather is looking to be a key signature fabric for Lim, and it was used in the right ways as to be modern and powerful: “bulletproof” vests, leather-layered-under-wool coats and cropped leather shorts. It was a futuristic look into a nomadic man–one whose portfolio happens to include rich leathergoods in the form of backpacks, gloves, shoes, not to mention eyewear–as he proved himself not just a dabbler in the men’s world, but rather a most serious–and increasingly influential–player.
