Raf Simons

Raf Simons firmly maintains his position as the avant-garde designer among those who are afraid to stand out but want to seem edgy. But putting snaps instead of buttons on a suit hardly makes one into an outlaw. For a designer who used to be a master of teenage angst, this seems like an unfortunate turn of events. Sure, many punks grow up and get desk jobs, but what about those who don’t? Still, Simons is a talent and possesses much sartorial strength. This was evident in the elongated knits and the perfectly cut slim pants. In the fashion world Simons is still an authority on the male silhouette (witness the numerous designers who follow him), and after experimenting with slimness and volume, Simons seems to have returned to a comfortable zone somewhere in-between.