From corsets to military aesthetics: what made menswear stand out at 080 Barcelona Fashion
The 38th edition of the international fashion week 080 Barcelona Fashion recently took place in Barcelona. As Catalonia’s official fashion platform, the event brings designers together and supports innovation and creative experimentation in clothing design. The number «080» in its name refers to Barcelona’s postal code. This season, particular attention was drawn to the menswear collections, in which designers reinterpreted familiar wardrobe staples in new ways – from corsets and sheer fabrics to military-inspired details and provocative accents.
Journalist and PR specialist Mykhailo Pylypchuk attended the shows and reports exclusively for INSIDER.AT on four collections that stood out this season and showcased the diversity of contemporary menswear.
Mykhailo Pylypchuk
Journalist and PR specialist
ALEIXANDRI STUDIO
The space is bathed in red light. Small boxes of popcorn sit on the chairs, while something resembling a circus march plays through the speakers. A man steps onto the runway wearing a red crop top adorned with chains and a feather in his hair.
He is followed by a model in a fluffy white long-sleeved top, layered with a pale pink corset. Sheer stockings with white lace complete the look.
Soon, a bearded model with a shaved head and bare chest appears. He wears a light-coloured corset, partially concealed beneath asymmetrically draped green fabric featuring a leopard print and black lace. Red high heels complete the outfit.
Phones go up across the audience as guests try to capture every appearance. Some models flirt with the crowd, looking directly into the cameras. Others walk with such serious expressions that they seem oblivious to everyone around them.
At the end of the show, one of the performers falls right in the middle of the runway. The audience freezes for a moment before erupting into applause. The young man quickly gets back up and continues his walk.
Behind this spectacle is CIRCA, a new line by Marc Aleixandri, founder of the gender-neutral label Aleixandri. The designer draws inspiration from the aesthetics of freak shows – spectacles in which people with unusual appearances were presented to audiences – as well as club kid culture. Members of New York’s club scene in the late 1980s and 1990s turned their bodies into artistic performances, using clothing, make-up and grotesque looks as forms of self-expression.
«Tired of being proper and neutral?» the designer asks in the press release. This question is key to understanding the concept: corsets, lace, heels and deliberately exaggerated silhouettes challenge established ideas of what menswear should look like.
After all, men’s wardrobes have never been static. Throughout history, men have worn tunics, kilts, embellished doublets and garments featuring dramatic draping. Over time, the boundaries between masculine and feminine fashion became more clearly defined, but contemporary couturiers are now questioning them once again. Aleixandri’s models take to the runway as though these conventions had never existed.
DAVID CATALÁN
Dim lighting, sounds resembling gusts of wind and the melancholic guitar music of Diogo Figueiredo. The Spring/Summer 2027 show opens with an unsettling atmosphere – much like the beginning of a holiday thriller.
Spanish designer David Catalán, founder of the eponymous label, is based in Porto, Portugal, where he runs his business with a focus on local production. He also presented his work at 080 Barcelona Fashion last season, while this time his show brought the runway programme to a close.
The runway is filled with suits, wide-leg trousers and sunglasses. One model appears in a black mesh cardigan, swim briefs and sandals. Another wears a blue metallic-effect blazer that shimmers with green and turquoise undertones beneath the spotlights. Denim shorts and a blue bucket hat matching the blazer complete the look.
There are also more understated outfits: denim ensembles with cream-coloured belts, oversized jackets, striped jumpers and Bermuda shorts.
One model wears a yellow ensemble featuring patch pockets, straps and long ties, resembling a life jacket. All it seems to be missing is a nearby beach.
The sunglasses conceal the models’ eyes. Against the dark runway and unsettling soundtrack, they appear to be preparing not for a holiday, but for an emergency.
This is how the designer brings the concept behind his CRISIS collection to life. He says the idea came to him while searching online for a vintage life jacket for his partner. Catalán became fascinated by the construction of the garment, so he transferred its straps, fastenings and other functional elements onto suits, shirts and trousers.
However, the collection does more than reinterpret the aesthetics of protective gear – it also raises questions about the very idea of safety. The things designed to protect us cannot always relieve our anxiety. The designer sums up this contradiction as follows: «Everyone is on holiday, but no one seems relaxed. Everyone is safe, but no one feels protected».
After the final walk, the audience continued applauding for quite some time. Meanwhile, I was browsing the label’s Instagram account to see how the designer suggested wearing the new pieces beyond the runway.
L’AMAR
DESERTORES («Deserters»), a collection by Spanish designer Nacho Lamar, founder of L’AMAR, brings the aesthetics of wartime into the world of fashion. It features military-inspired silhouettes, exaggerated shoulders, voluminous sleeves and unconventional constructions reminiscent of armour.
The first model to appear before the audience is a man wearing an orange sweater printed with an image of an old Spanish postage stamp. A white shirt and navy-blue tie peek out from underneath. On his head sits a voluminous beige side cap, pulled down almost over his eyes.
He is followed by a model in a striking green leather jacket, carrying a brown briefcase. But the most impressive pieces are the pseudo-medieval suits of armour!
One look is particularly memorable: a large structure resembling a propeller with long black blades rotates behind the model’s back. It seems as though he might take off straight from the stage at any moment.
Another man appears with a black frame across his shoulders, resembling an open umbrella. He wears dark trousers, a white shirt and a large white scarf tied around his neck. Equally striking is an ensemble consisting of shorts, a jacket and a side cap, decorated with black-and-white newspaper clippings. Here, military aesthetics intertwine with theatricality and artistic references.
Behind these striking looks lies a very specific story. The collection is dedicated to the people who saved Spain’s national artistic heritage during the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939). Museum professionals, intellectuals and art enthusiasts transported paintings by Velázquez and Goya to safer locations, risking their own lives in the process.
This is precisely the central idea behind DESERTORES: protecting what is valuable does not always require taking up arms. Sometimes courage means putting yourself at risk for the sake of art, memory and beauty.
OUTSIDERS DIVISION
Founded by designer David Méndez Alonso, OUTSIDERS DIVISION is known for its concept of «clothing for adults who never grew up». Its eclectic collections combine the playful aesthetics of childhood with elements of streetwear, pop culture and unexpected stylistic choices. In his new line, GROOMED AND HORNY, the designer adds a more provocative edge to this universe, exploring the themes of physicality, sexuality and identity.
On the runway, a model appears in a white shirt, black bow tie and striped trousers. A red lipstick mark is visible on his cheek. Overall, a perfectly respectable look – provided no one asks too many questions. But as soon as the model turns around, an entirely different construction is revealed beneath the outfit: underwear, a lace suspender belt and stockings.
This element of surprise is part of the designer’s playful challenge to conventional ideas of decency and traditional representations of masculinity. Club and queer culture have long used fashion as a way to explore gender roles, the body and sexuality, and OUTSIDERS DIVISION brings its own ironic perspective to the conversation.
The inspiration for the collection came from an unusual evening in Paris. As David Méndez Alonso told Vogue España, after attending a Chanel show, he and his partner came across a sex club where guests were required to undress down to their underwear before entering. That experience became the starting point for a collection in which playing with nudity and concealed details forms the central element of the design concept.
There is another interesting detail: according to Nacho Lamar, David Méndez Alonso reinterpreted three suits from the L’AMAR atelier for this show. In this way, two collections with entirely contrasting moods came together through the collaboration between the couturiers and the skill of their tailors.
Despite their different themes and aesthetic approaches, these four collections share a desire to push beyond conventional ideas of menswear. Some designers reinterpret masculinity through corsets, lace and heels; others draw on military-inspired styling, while others explore physicality, sexuality and the relationship between childhood and adulthood.
A man wearing a corset does not lose any part of who he is, just as wearing armour does not automatically make him a warrior. In these collections, clothing becomes a way of expressing oneself, one’s beliefs and feelings without conforming to other people’s expectations. And perhaps this is the greatest value of such experiments – the freedom to choose who you want to be and not allow outward appearances to dictate your inner identity.
Photos: Brand press offices, Mykhailo Pylypchuk
