Fashion Show Review: Burberry Prorsum Menswear

Fashion Show Review: Burberry Prorsum (Menswear)

Burberry Prorsum's Fall/Winter 2012 menswear collection opened with a roar at London Fashion week on January 14, 2012. Hyde Park rumbled with thunder and the calming sound of rain as Burberry's uniquely produced show communicated a sense of nostalgia through weather motifs indicative of classic London weather. The iconic British luxury brand was all about drama. Inside the tent viewers where enveloped in darkness, with artificially produced thunder and rain sound effects, amplifying the anxiousness and anticipation for the show to begin.

Once the lights turned on and the music started, Burberry did what it does best ¬— send impeccably tailored suits and coats down the runway suitable for the urban 21st century dandy. The first look down the runway, a white polka dotted black dress shirt under a charcoal grey wool suit with a black trench coat and accessorized with a grey flat cap, encapsulated the look of the whole collection, entitled "The Gentlemen," and communicated Christopher Bailey's aesthetic vision for Fall 2012. As more and more two and three buttoned, streamlined wool suits, in deepening shades of grey, strutted down the runway, Bailey definitely emphasized his interpretation of the security, masculinity, and power this staple piece conveys in every man's closet. However, it was evident in the collection as a whole of Burberry's ability to juxtapose its classic roots with the eccentricity of sartorial style.

This innovation to comfortable mesh styles was particularly manifested through the overcoats, knits and accessories presented in the collection. The cut and flawless construction and fit of the key pieces such as the quilted army flight jackets, peacoats, duffle coats, parkas, and the classic trench coats, all embodied the refined heritage of the brand. Yet the subtle infusion of funnel-necked cropped bomber jackets