paris menswear fashion week: Natasha Zinko

My last show to attend for my second day of menswear week was Natasha Zinko. Gathered outside with a growing group of fashion week goers we are soon ushered into another waiting area with some shade. Much appreciated. As we wait there is some ambiance music, classes of sparkling lemonade in paper cups that don the Ukrainian flag colors. A foreshadowing of what we’re about to experience? Absolutely and not so surprising as Zinko is Ukrainian born with family who still reside in Odessa. As we wait and wait some more, I notice that we’re actually listening to a loop of news coverage recordings of the current war in the Ukraine. Already an emotional pretense has been set and it’s only building the anticipation of what’s waiting inside. Once inside the venue, which is an indoor sports court, the venue quickly fills and I’m moved from standing upstairs to standing downstairs with a front row view. Perhaps the most impactful and memorable show I had attended that week, Natasha Zinko had the most current feeling collection that felt responsive to what men and women are wearing today. Her creative expression felt empathetic and engaging. A gender fluid collection indeed that felt industrial, punk yet ethereally feminine all at the same time. Leather, oversized silhouettes and safety pin and chain hardware were steady uniform cornerstones of this collections, yet the appearance of a pink floor length dress and patchwork denim gown added soft and tender breaths of fresh air. Zinko joined her models on the floor for a quick farewell and she had barely made her exit as everyone, including myself flocked to the floor for photographs and video of the models but make no mistake everyone left there energetically altered and twice as empathetic.

See more coverage of the Natasha Zinko show on my vlog here.