Crunchdown

A lot of English press might choose to skip out the first couple of days of Paris but Day 1 as in the 29th September gave me a whole lot to get excited about.  You'll have heard about Anthony Vaccarello getting feted, celebrated and praised to the skies.  That of course without saying seeing as he won this year's ANDAM award.  Julien David who showed later that day though also deserves a spotlight though for doing something that is a little out of sync with what you'd expect from Paris.  David knows streetwear and has spent the last couple of seasons converging his indepth knowledge high grade Japanese streetwear with a meticulous use of Japanese fabrics that when combined create a vibrant mix that can hold its own up against the work of Parisian ateliers.
Julien David, whilst being French is mainly based in Tokyo and like a few other Japanese designers who showed at Paris, tremors of what happened earlier in the year in Japan did ripple through their collections, even if it was a subconsious thing.  For David, he imagined a world collapsing on itself - a big bang in reverse and despite that immense vision, what actually manifested in the collection were a series of carefully researched and articulated prints that graced loose separates, tailored jackets that had multiple darts to convey the 'crunch' of the earth.  The relaxed slouch of David's clothes actually does click in with the sporty vibes of  S/S 12 but I get the impression that his clothes are more about real ease and comfort rather than clothes with sporty undertones but lack actual function.  David's pockets in his trousers and shorts look properly deep too - if I can't bung a phone, a wallet, a small point and shoot and a lipbalm in them, they're not proper pockets to me...