Neil Barrett is at a point in his career where he can actually reference his own work. “I’ve become sort of a heritage brand,” he joked at his presentation. On the first day of the men’s season here, Milan was in the midst of a sticky heatwave, with humidity so dense as to make oxygen feel almost in short supply. Barrett came to the rescue, offering, along with welcome refreshments in his well AC’d venue, a collection built on the concept of air circulating around the body—a most pertinent idea in the unbearably hot conditions.
The utilitarian sophistication of ’90s minimalism (which he defines as “an elevated concept of simplicity”) has always resonated for Barrett, who has a background in sharp military tailoring. For spring he riffed on the consistency of his wardrobe’s strongholds, referencing an urban uniform look and clean-cut, smart sportswear. Inspired by military attire made for extreme weather conditions, garments were structured and engineered to let the body breathe.
Fabrications were paneled, perforated, or pierced, with holes, slits, and cuts exposing bare skin or thin layers of mesh underneath. As a subtle decorative gesture, which Barrett described as ‘reductionist,’ metallic eyelets were sparsely appliquéd to create visual appeal on square-cut trucker jackets and straight trousers with round cut-outs at the knees.
The presentation was shown in a video format in the white cube of Barrett’s headquarters, which was transformed with high dunes of dark sand that lent it a surreal, artsy atmosphere. “I wanted to replicate nature inside an industrial environment,” Barrett said. He called the collection Urban Oasis. And indeed, it was.
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