For an urban, hip-hop fueled collection, D. GNAK’s Fall/Winter 2016 season was impeccably made, and that’s evident in every one of designer Kang Dong-Jun’s looks in his latest lookbook. Korean sensibility merges with classic menswear tailoring for a collection full of dimension and that “something extra” factor we continuously hope for from the designer; and, really, for a lookbook, it checked every box on the list: ferocious graphics, bold colors, edgy layers and top-notch styling (yes, yes, yes and yes).
Wearable and innovative at the same time, this was a street-intended collection through and through – and we can already imagine the line of Korean hip-hop singers waiting to wear it. Daring reds came in waves with full-frontal outerwear options and well-played stripes and checks; screen-printed lions appeared as panels to coats and oversized sweatshirts; and the traditional Korean royal dress-inspired layers, outerwear and skirts made for a complex yet entirely urban aesthetic. This was not one for the faint of heart, but there will soon be a lot of men around London and Seoul flaunting these looks.
Attitude, forward design and quality craftsmanship, Kang Dong-Jun has them all. And while we come to expect a strong collection from the Seoul-based designer from season to season, this one in particular really aims to please the more particular shoppers of the bunch. Again, he continues to do things in his own way, and it keeps paying off every time.
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