“Nobody can stay in the garden of Eden.” James Baldwin was right in Giovanni’s Room. We had only 12 minutes to see Saint Laurent’s Fall/Winter 2026 collection. The divine comparison is not hyperbole; we worship at Anthony Vaccarello’s altar. Which is why with every last-minute announcement of the menswear show, we get prepared to go on our knees (to pray, obviously). The designer’s command over menswear is such that more than unveiling collections, he’s revealing the zeitgeist’s latest obsessions. Every season, the image of masculinity is, if not redefined, at least tweaked.
And so, we can’t help but have our stomach flutter when, in the usual venue, the Pinault Collection, the lights go out and the first silhouette is revealed against a molten gold backdrop. This season, it was a particularly strong shape. The recognisable wide shoulders were in deep contrast with a nipped-in waist. As the lights dimmed in, a beautifully cut double-breasted jacket was revealed, the slight hourglass shape only slightly off the traditional male ideal. As the collection progressed, more suits of similar cuts appeared, as did fur collars that completely hid models’ necks. One in particular, atop a tight knee-length cardigan, was a personal favourite.
Scoop neck knits broke the tailoring streak. These were perfectly cropped and accompanied by a tucked-in ascot. Perhaps what is most compelling about Vaccarello’s menswear is its apparent queerness. For the past few seasons, the designer has been exploring it within the context of masculinity. Here, he takes on Baldwin’s aforementioned classic as a starting point. The author’s novel details the story of an American moving to Paris, finding his own homosexuality as a no longer avoidable fact.
The collection illustrates the point beautifully. Galvanised by the inherent double life that queerness entailed in the 1950s, Vaccarello draws on the tension between private and public. Striped cotton sets resemble pyjamas, but are then layered under heavy coats and held at the neck with ties. Glossy over-the-knee boots pop out of tailored shorts. The texture reappears in ever-so-translucent trench coats. This latex-like finish, historically associated with queer sexual identity, is juxtaposed against the traditionally masculine origins of the silhouette.
Vaccarello’s Saint Laurent is not boundary-pushingly queer but intellectually so. Here, the historically shameful reality of queerness is explored through materiality. And still, if we were to take the garments at face value, their impact on visual culture exists outside their symbolic context. The Robert Mapplethorpe over-the-knee leather boots are proof of it. We can say for certain that the glossy tight boots will cause a similar effect. Vaccarello never overwhelms the silhouette with symbolism. Masculinity is adjusted through cut, texture, proportion, but never performance. Eden is closed. The garden is gone. But Saint Laurent shows us how to dress for what comes after.
Words by Pedro Vasconcelos
