ANN DEMEULEMEESTER SPRING 2011 MENSWEAR

An all-white collection of clothes that cleaved close to the body signaled a change on theAnn Demeulemeester catwalk. Gone were the shadowy, poetic layers, replaced by pieces so clinical and precise they wouldn't have looked out of place in a Viennese fencing academy, or on the attendants of an upscale insane asylum (the white breastplates also looked like deconstructed straitjackets). Where there was volume, as in a silken parka or a jacquard coat, it was kept in check by a wide elasticated cummerbund that could probably work Spanx-like wonders on a wayward midriff, as well.

Marcel Castenmiller

The show seemed over in a flash, but while the audience was uncertainly applauding, it started up again, duplicated detail for detail in black, with the cotton of the first course often replaced by leather. "I wanted to see what would happen," said Demeulemeester of the switcheroo. "Things look quite different. It's a different emotion."

Ethan James

She was almost right. Of course, white cotton and black leather are scarcely of the same family, but while you might expect the leather to have a dark, vaguely threatening cast, it was extraordinary how sinister the purest white could look as well. It was an intriguing experiment. And we're glad that Ann does these things, so we don't have to.

Toms Silke

Tomek Szczukiecki

BENONI LOOS (MAJOR)

Cole Mohr

Hubert Rapisardi

Thomas Hassler

GERHARD FREIDL

Ethan James

Marcel Castenmiller

Toms Silke

Ann Demeulemeester Spring 2010 Men´s.

"I felt enlightened," said Ann Demeulemeester, by way of explaining her motivation for Spring 2010.

Her enlightenment lightened her presentation, especially after the warrior extravagance of her Fall collection. Two words: no layers. The proposal was as simple as a suit worn shirtless.

The occasional black waistcoat was so discreet as to remain almost completely hidden. "I wanted people to see the garment," Demeulemeester added. Of course, there was more to the collection—but not much.

She was also looking for "sensuality, but in a masculine way."

A sheer cardigan was scattered with sequins. With a matching top, it made a sparkly twinset (i.e., more sensual than masculine).

Long silken coats recalled a boxer's robe. Another coat, in icy-white viscose, was more kimonolike. (There was a pajama set to go with it.) The offering felt edited in every way. It wasn't simply the absence of layers.

Demeulemeester's signature languid proportions had similarly been reined in. And the usual poetry of her presentations was accordingly drastically reduced.

Perhaps it made for a more comprehensible collection in the showroom (the gal's gotta sell, after all), but I imagine ardent fans are shedding a silent tear.