Kim Jones shows Dior Men in Tokyo - in pictures

Fashion heads to the Japanese capital, with both Valentino and Dior showing their pre-fall 2019 collections there

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Now headed by Kim Jones, menswear at Dior has undergone something of a transformation. With the new designer comes a new name – Dior Men – while the old moniker of Dior Homme has been consigned to the history books. Gone too is the severe cut, so beloved of Jones’ predecessor Kris Van Assche, and in its place Jones has introduced all the relaxed appeal that made him so successful at Louis Vuitton.

To set the tone, Jones commissioned Japanese artist Hajime Sorayama to create a 40-foot female robot to sit on stage. And rather than dictating a rigid set of looks, Jones offered something looser and more forgiving, with diverse elements any man can take on.

epa07199551 An almost 12-metre high robot sculpture by Japanese artist Hajime Sorayama stands in the center of the catwalk of the Dior Men Pre-Fall 2019 collection by British fashion designer Kim Jones in Tokyo, Japan, 30 November 2018.  EPA/FRANCK ROBICHON
A robot sculpture by Japanese artist Hajime Sorayama at the Dior Men pre-fall 2019 show

Want a sharply tailored suit? Tick. Looking for slick separates? Tick. A touch more street-inspired? Tick. Precise jackets sat over fluid satin trousers, while boxy metallic leather tops were twinned with duster coats and heavy boots.

The house motif was packed onto fabric so dense, it began to look like moiré silk, while elsewhere oxidised silver turned up as a perfectly crumpled blazer and pair of shorts. Trousers came with braces that doubled as utility harnesses and coats - even the morally dubious astrakhan - were beautifully cut, highlighting the depth of skill at Dior.

The whole of Jones’s foray to Tokyo was a delve through Dior history, because Mr Christian Dior was a huge fan of Tokyo, and drew much inspiration from the country as a whole, so the cherry blossom silken shirt and shorts were not just hyperbole. Even the closing looks of Jones’s show were updated facsimiles of wrapped jackets created by Mr Dior for a Tokyo-based client.

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