Who’s got that one video of Nicki Minaj? You know, the one where she’s walking out of a Paris fashion show and they ask her what she thought? “Amazing, as always. So good,” the rapper responds drily. But when pressed on specifics, that’s where things get vague. “It just seemed super surreal. Everything was next level,” she continued evasively, before uttering her one word review, striking fear into the Google drives of fashion critics across the globe. “Colours!”
Whether Ms. Minaj was actually paying attention to that show or not, it seems her post-event analysis may have trickled down to the Parisian cobbles, because, well: colours! Yes, you heard it here first. The weather might have been grey, but that didn’t stop the menswear punters from bringing a kaleidoscopic freedom to the ice-stricken streets. There were leather jackets in shamrock and canary, pastel trousers covered in picture book prints; a snow white teddy coat concealed a teal-toned ensemble, while a lilac Loewe jumper clashed against a yellow spotty skirt. Along with all this, two particularly spirited attendees were clearly out for blood, one rocking up in a colossal silver puffer skirt and shocking pink tights, the other in a patch-covered racing jacket and gap year flares.
Elsewhere, sunglasses came in shades of carrot, and a chartreuse hoodie complemented a studded Vetements belt. Pink dyed denim and a yellow adidas jacket gave way to an ankle length camo coat, while colour blocked knitwear was spotted at several points. Down the road, one rain-splattered attendee sported their cobalt Corner bag (a JW fave), while another trudged the streets in purple Botter slides. The model Andrew Georgiades even showed up in two monochrome outfits, a soft green day suit and another pile of bright yellow knits. And down below things were similarly eclectic, with shoes coming as marbled clogs, peach Jeffrey Campbells, and fuzzy pink mules.
But of course, there can’t be day without a little night, and others were intent on flexing their darker sides. One attendee braved the elements in a huge, black Canada Goose jacket, while another squeaked along in a BDSM-inspired latex bomber. Rick Owens’ famous Kiss boots made multiple appearances, and one pair even came covered in a pair of ripped up tights. Gothic silver rings were piled on fingers, a Y/Project cap concealed its wearer’s face, and one leather-clad man even stacked two dark kilts over his New Rock stompers. But, despite all these valiant attempts to keep the Parisian palette muted, we really do think that colours! might be here to stay.
