The Tomato Has It: Henrik Vibskov's Autumn/Winter 2023/24 Collection

Conceptual and creative, Henrik Vibskov's new Autumn/Winter 2023-24 collection, presented during Paris Men's Fashion Week, was a welcome injection of brilliant colour and whimsy. The designer's avant-garde aesthetic is also underpinned by his commitment to producing fully sustainable collections, writes Antonio Visconti. Photography by Elli Ioannou

HENRIK Vibskov launched an intriguing and engaging collection in Paris. At the presentation, held at the Hotel Normandy Le Chantier, he created a forest of mechanical trees, that seemed to breath with long-fingered harvesters as they raised and lowered the "branches". 

Sprouting deep red and pink leaves, they formed shadow patterns, as if on a forest floor, and crops hung ripe and heavy, ready to be picked.

The Danish designer says the theme and shape of the collection was originally inspired by the tomato fights of Valencia in Spain and then became a celebration of the tomato itself and its history. Taken from the Americas and disseminated by the Spaniards around the world, the tomato also ended up in the garden of the Medici where it was a decorative part of table arrangements and grown among flowers, but not eaten, rather appreciated for its colour, shape and variety. 

The designer's fascination with the tomato only grew as he began to explore its cultural heritage. "This is a homage to the golden apple and to the hands that plant and harvest, that feed people and cultures," he says. Looking beyond the brilliant red colour of the tomato which is a motif throughout the collection, chefs' uniforms and workwear as well as tomato cans and boxes became the inspiration for silhouettes.

The designer says the themes of the collection were originally inspired by the tomato fights of Valencia in Spain and then became a celebration of the tomato itself and its history. 

The collection's prints also drew on the tomato plant and its hues for the palette: luminescent red, lime green, orange, sand tones and deep gold contrasted with the dark blues and greens found in the shade of tomato orchards. While the artworks all refer to the shape of tomatoes but have an abstract aesthetic.  

Most of the fabrics in the collection (up to 72%) have all been sustainably produced, with the aim to ultimatley make that 100%. Organic cotton, recycled polyester and recycled PET bottles for padding in outerwear have been incorporated into the designs along with Tencel, made from cellulose fibers, European linen and virgin wool as well as using nontoxic dyes and prints. Henrik Vibskov's work affirms that sustainability can be joyous and fun and doesn't have to signify a unform utilitarianism.

 See highlights from the collection below.

Paris Fashion Week: Highlights of the Evocative Songzio Autumn/Winter 2023-24 Collection

Paris Fashion Week: Homme Plisse Issey Miyake Autum/Winter 2023/24

Brilliant colours at the Issey Miyake AW23 show in Paris against a backdrop of glimmering lights.Main photograph by Elli Ioannou for DAM

An enchanting installation and performance created a mysterious and engaging start to Issey Miyake's Homme Plisse Autumn/Winter 2023/24 show for the new menswear collection. The luminescence was a dramatic counterpoint to the vivid colour blocking and austere lines of the Japanese maison's designs, writes Antonio Visconti. Photography by Elli Ioannou

The glimmering and immersive installation

at the Issey Miyake show in Paris

IN PARIS, the Issey Miyake show opened with a lyrical light show created by French visual and performing arts directors Claire Bardainne and Adrian Mondot. The immersive video installations transformed the runway at the Palais de Tokyo museum, so that the space seemed sparkling and infinite. The gleaming, flowing lights were striated like a luminescent night sky and the chanting music and sound design added to the sense of mystery and otherworldliness.

Amid the spectacular performance, the new designs emerged in all of their spare fluidity: the simplicity given a jolt with a vibrant color palette. Jackets had an expansive, rounded silhouette while the pleats extended from the neck to the shoulders like raglan sleeves. A coat designed with a radius of pleats was made with high-density polyester to give it a three-dimensional quality.

As a counterpoint to the poetry of the installation, the collection, called Upon a Simplex is a study of triangles and other simple geometric shapes. Volume was incorporated into the garments with the clever Issey Miyake pleats, folded into the construction of the fabric. The collection, even with some more elaborate forms, still reflected the theme of exploring basic geometry.

The graphic patterns were based on the work of American architect and philosopher Buckminster Fuller and his way of transforming and subdividing a sphere into triangles. In the designs, the print has triangles that appear to gradually increase in size, adding another layer of three-dimensionality.

The show opened with a lyrical, immersive video installation that transformed the runway into a luminescent night sky 

The deceptively simple designs

were a counterpoint to the 

otherworldly installation.

A series of coats crafted from short-fibre recycled nylon, gave the fabric a soft, cotton-like texture. Adjustable drawstrings inserted into the seams transformed the garment: the strap inside can be pulled out so the coat can be worn over the shoulder.

Another design features rectangular overlays that can be opened or closed to play with the look and shape of the jacket. By undoing the buttons, the overlapping pieces open into triangular shapes. 

A pleated grid print in contrasting colours comes as coat, waistcoat and trousers while diagonal creases and oblique lines create an optical illusion that gives movement to the graphics. 

This was a collection that was a clever combination of contrasts: sporty yet sober; colourful but understated and voluminous yet with fluid, sleek lines. While the master Issey Miyake is no longer at the helm, his ethos of practical, poetic magic imbues the entire collection. 

Highlights from the Issey Miyake AW23/24 show in Paris 

Paris Fashion Week: Highlights of the Walter Van Beirendonck Autumn/Winter 2023-24 Collection. Photographed by Elli Ioannou