Receiving MSGM’s catwalk invite was like being handed a time capsule of university admin. Like an admissions form with each individual guests’ name printed along the blank line, recollections of one-on-one guidance counsellor meetings, questionable canteen lunches and taxing exams were immediately evoked.
The show was equally nostalgic, riddled with cosy cardigans paired with baggy tailored trousers or P.E ready trackies and sophomores in sleek suits. Birthing a grungy new school uniform constructed from the building blocks of Y2K menswear, ice hockey jerseys and American football equipment, many MSGM pieces were sprawled with the scribbled signatures of what we can only assume are fellow classmates’ – penned on sartorial mementos in the same way awkward, acne ridden, Lynx drenched peers would sign your yearbook. Boy shorts of the too-cool-for-school kind cropped up as a key part of the collection, while crisp, collared academic shirting and skinny ties were rife, and varsity-cut vests took the whole new school feel to unprecedented heights.
Totally rebellious, it was a collection that came of age with fiery finesse. Primary hues enriched the grey-tone collection while vivid accents were a high point; crimson, Klein blue and sunshine yellow harmoniously combined with a myriad of pinks, sandy beiges and black, and unexpected manga graphics appeared in pop-art style.
For setting fires under the bleachers and french kissing in front of the lockers; for every student from the teacher’s pet to the hopeless rebel; MSGM’s AW23 edit was casually preppy and perfectly nostalgic. As for its grade, we’ll give it an A++.
Photography courtesy of MSGM.
