General Idea Fall 2014

OK, men in skirts, been done before to somewhat good effect and to disastrous effect. And though this trend—men in skirts or masculine aprons—if you want to call it a trend, showed on the runways of Skingraft, Duckie Brown and Nicholas K, General Idea found a way to incorporate the men skirt aesthetic into their fall 2014 collection better than others, and in a way that some stylish men might want to put in their fall/winter wardrobe.

For fall 2014 General Idea’s creative director Bumsuk Choi looked to a much edgier point of view for his collection. In previous outings, Choi has been inspired by wilderness outerwear, the military, and Tibetan pilgrimages. This season, the urban warrior was front and foremost in the creative mind of Choi and how that urban man deals with the vicissitudes of city dwelling.

Like his customer, Choi pulls from lots of different sources. From urban warrior to downtown fashionisto to futuristic style maven to modern punk chic, Choi is always in step and sometimes ahead of what the urban dweller wants to wear. All of these points of view are expressed in a mélange of extended crouches, quilted crop pants, leather skirt aprons, neoprene hooded jackets and color blocked bombers.

Choi, accurately, has plugged into the concept that modern man’s masculinity will not be defined by his choice of silhouette or garb, but by his attitude, his swagger and overall his confidence. That said; the modern man/General Idea customer can rock a knit sweater dress, a leather apron/skirt or a cardigan dress.

Standouts in this collection are Choi’s outerwear—an item the brand has become known for—particularly, Choi’s black neoprene hooded coat, black shearling hooded coat, and charcoal color blocked bomber jacket. Still, there were some great men’s skirts, ranging from the black shearling skirt to the black leather riding skirt.

—William S. Gooch