The JUUN.J show opened with a bang and a burst of smoke, from which emerged a défilé of young men looking like exaggerated, WWI-era soldiers and civilians redrawn as cartoon characters from the not-so-distant future.

Khaki brown, charcoal grey, cream and black ruled this runway, along with rounded, over-padded shoulders; cropped pants (that sometimes suggested the silhouette and proportion of plus-fours); and clunky, clown-like boots.

Even the sweaters were exaggerated, including a group of torso-hugging knits that showcased every trick in a yarn-lover’s book: huge turtlenecks, bold bands of cable stitches and even some open-work, cobweb effects.

The show’s last looks featured gorgeous, silkscreened images of Asian faces splashed across neoprene pullovers (looking for all the world like inflatable toys), followed by a final rush of futuristic troopers in space helmets and jumpsuits. Or perhaps this was a clean-up crew in the wake of nuclear disaster. Hard to tell–and almost beside the point. Défilés like this don’t offer shopping lists of menswear basics. Instead, you leave with the impression of traveling someplace new and seeing the world through a designer’s eyes.

––Mark Grischke

Photographs by Stéphane Israël