From João Machado to Ed Mendoza, keep your eye on these rising creatives in 2023
It’s that time again. Today, fashion industry insiders from across the world have descended on Florence, as the Italian city hosts the 2023 outing of Pitti Uomo and kickstarts the AW23 menswear shows.
Coming up across the course of the next couple of weeks, we’ll see KidSuper designer Colm Dillane take over at Louis Vuitton, find out what Gucci looks like without the guidance of Alessandro Michele, and take in what designers like Bianca Saunders, Ludovic de Saint Sernin, and JordanLuca have been working away on for the past six months.
But while fashion week is now fully back post-pandemic, and there’s no denying the power and beauty that can be conjured on an IRL runway, global lockdowns showed us that there are many ways – beyond a traditional show – to present your work as a designer. In some ways, it evened the playing field for the young designers for whom showing at fashion week is still a pipedream – and that’s if they even want to show in Paris, Milan, or London at all.
Some of the wildest talent around right now might not be part of the official fashion season schedule, but deserves just as much attention as the Pradas and Versaces of the world. As the shows kick off, we’ve compiled a list of ten menswear designers to keep your eye on in 2023. From graduate designers like Ed Mendoza, Charlie Constantinou, and Pip Paz-Howlett to Mexican creative Patricio Campillo Taracena’s label The Pack, these are the names you need to know.
PIP PAZ-HOWLETT
Emerging from Central Saint Martins’ MA program in 2022, London-based designer Pip Paz-Howlett honed his craft working at labels like JW Anderson, Bottega Veneta, and Proenza Schouler. Now working as a freelance designer specialising in menswear, print, and textiles, Paz-Howlett’s eponymous line brings the fun back into silk screenprinting. Taking inspiration and references from vintage gay porn and queer representation in pop culture and music, each of his pieces are one-of-a-kind psychedelic designs created from repurposed materials.
HORACE PAGE
Year on year, the world’s top fashion schools showcase the next generation of talent who are ready to make their mark on the industry. Among the line-up of CSM’s 2022 graduating MA menswear class, one designer who stood out was Horace Page. For his graduate collection, Page looked at garments such as hunting clothing and 18th-century military wear, which was once associated with as upper-class symbolism, in turn reappropriating traditional formal clothing in a casual way. The result was a series of wool and tweed knitwear suits detailed with distorted nylon cuts and trims.
LAGOS SPACE PROGRAMME
Founded by designer Adeju Thompson, Lagos Space Programme goes beyond the boundaries of a typical label. Instead, it stands more as a multidisciplinary design studio which allows artists to take up space and question what it means to be a brand. Centred around decolonisation, Thompson’s designs not only honour and draw inspiration from traditional Yoruba garments, but also push forward contemporary ideas surrounding cultural pieces. Since LSP’s launch, the brand has been acknowledged by fashion’s most competitive award, earning a rightful place on the LVMH Prize shortlist for two years in a row.
YAKU STAPLETON
After completing his BA at Leeds Beckett University a few years ago, Yaku Stapleton was awarded the BFC MA Scholarship to continue his studies and hone his craft. Since then, Stapleton has consistently singled himself out as a designer to watch. For his latest collection, which is stocked on APOC Store, Stapleton began by exploring the characterisation of different members of his family. He then channelled them into looks created using different deadstock materials inspired by fantasy and Afro-futurism. Pieces include the second look of his latest collection, for which he crafted human-sized dragon wings from latex, scrap foam, and wire.
JOÃO MACHADO
Based in Seoul but raised in Portugal, João Machado brings intimacy and emotion into esoteric collections through deft heavy draping and deft, delicate lacing. Blending historical elements but bringing them straight into 2023 via contemporary construction and finishes, the designer offers up a unique twist on ballet-style romanticism, with dramatic silhouettes blurring the perimeters of traditional ideas of masculinity. Using his real-life situations and relationships as a springboard for his inspiration, Machado is an example of a designer channelling relatable experiences into deeply intimate clothing.
CHARLIE CONSTANTINOU
At just 24, Cypriot-born designer Charlie Constantinou has already proved himself as a designer to watch. Last year, Constantinou won the competitive International Talent Support Academy Award in Trieste, receiving a 15,000 Euro cash prize alongside a six-month mentorship programme. His winning collection was inspired by resistance against treacherous weather conditions, after he researched native Inuit tribes in Canada and Alaska. Constantinou went on to create hand-dyed, streetwear-influenced garments equipped to brave all conditions.
ED MENDOZA
While size inclusivity in womenswear has been slowly on the rise, plus-size representation in menswear is near to non-existent. So when Ed Mendoza presented his final collection at the CSM grad show last year on only plus-size male models, it was a breath of fresh air. His fun, textile-driven collection rightfully earned him the L’Oréal Professionnel Creative Award – a prestigious award given to graduates based on originality and creativity. As an Afro-Latinx designer, hailing from Peru, Grenada, and St Lucia, Mendoza channels the beauty of colourful imagery found in his cultures and turns them into vibrant, psychedelic garments filled with joy.
THE PACK BY CAMPILLO
Hailing from Mexico City, Patricio Campillo Taracena launched The Pack in 2016. With ethical labour standards and environmentally friendly materials and practices at the core of The Pack’s brand ethos, Campillo’s aims for his label go far beyond simply making clothes. Taking inspiration from what he refers to as ‘pre-Hispanic minimalism’, Campillo’s pieces display impeccable craftsmanship through the lens of traditional Mexican architecture and Charro culture. Leather two-piece suits are treated with metal-free dyes and detailed with embroidery typically found on the attire of Charros (Mexican horse riders).
CHLOE NARDIN
Raised in the suburbs of Paris, Chloe Nardin launched her label in 2021 with the aim of challenging the conceptions associated with ‘Parisian Chic’. Featured in the Dazed Winter 2021 issue as of one the new generation of young designers examining cultural identity, Nardin’s progressive take on French romanticism offers a gentle and refreshing perspective on masculinity. Simultaneously reconsidering culture and activewear, her pieces create a synergy between traditional Mediterranean textiles and men’s contemporary sportswear styles.
KOZABURO
Inspired by the underground subcultures and music in 90s Japan, designer and Parsons graduate Kozaburo Akasaka has been honing his craft since 2011 when he worked with American designer Thom Browne. He has since gone on to win the special prize at the 2017 LVMH Prize. Now, Kozaburo continues to investigate the nuanced space between personal aesthetics and the way we creatively express ourselves. The label brings together a keen eye for slick tailoring with streetwear inflected silhouettes, resulting in dynamic looks which cannot be boxed into categories. Elsewhere, alongside his eponymous line, Kozaburo also has a utility line entitled ‘Waves of Sand’.