Kim Jones has engendered desire for seasons by formulating ‘over-the-top’ and ‘embellishments’ in his collections for Dior Men. His throughline stems from replicating and, in turn, producing a new Monsieur Christian Dior’s haute couture legacy in our modern age. It finds expressions of the House’s core codes and revitalises them by the likes of collaborators that dwell in a multitude of art forms. But in recent collections produced by Kim Jones, the significance of Dior’s heritage has appeared increasingly floaty — when and how else can one produce and reproduce the thought process of an era that has passed? Perhaps, for Kim Jones, it was time to contemplate fashion’s next thorough cycle of cultural reflection.

This was the case with Spring 2023; Kim Jones’ new pre-collection for Dior Men, a collection presented in a time which is neither trad nor techno, conservative nor accelerationist, and the one that precedes his upcoming collaboration with Los Angeles-based label ERL. Both feature garments that are nonetheless forward-thinking but different from the usual offerings with effortlessly put-together creations.

Historians dispute the exact origins of pre-collections, but these carefully-curated garments began to appear in department stores across the West as laid-back alternatives to what the runway typically offers. Privy to the knowledge that pre-collections are often regarded as the ‘commercial season’, Kim Jones often designs his pre-collections with the same effect as any other collections — each bold enough to tell a story that strives to make an impact in menswear.

They have also become the rare instance where we see a softer approach to the artistic director’s hand at Dior Men, bringing the work solidly toward the logic of haute couture but grounded in its need for wearability. It refreshes the palette and emphasises the range of Kim Jones’ work — a quality lacking in many other menswear instances in the past.