How Saint Laurent did ‘quiet luxury’ for menswear summer 2024: Anthony Vaccarello rolled out sharp tailoring, sheer shirts and polka dot blouses on the Berlin runway

Jun 13 , 2023

Anthony Vaccarello presented his own take on “quiet luxury” for Saint Laurent’s summer 2024 men’s show held in Berlin, on June 12 – but the brand has actually been doing the trend for years. Photo: Handout

Fashion

On Monday, YSL channelled quiet luxury with a Parisian spin on its Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin runway – but the brand’s been owning this trend for years before TikTok and Kylie Jenner ran with it

Rather than beige and cashmere polos typically associated with ‘stealth wealth’, creative director Anthony Vaccarello brought black, black and more black on its distinctively androgynous pieces

There has been a lot of talk lately about “quiet luxury”, a low-key approach to dressing favoured by those who have arrived, the one percenters who don’t need to show off logos – or their wealth for that matter – and opt for timeless pieces that don’t scream “fashion victim” or “nouveau riche”.

Saint Laurent brought black, black and more black for its summer 2024 men’s show held in Berlin, on June 12. Photo: Handout

Anthony Vaccarello, creative director of French label Saint Laurent, has been offering his own take on quiet luxury since way before it became a trend on TikTok and celebrities like Kylie Jenner started embracing it with aplomb.

His version of quiet luxury, however, is not what we’ve come to associate with the look – think lots of beige, cashmere polo necks and simple but well-made clothes meant for blending in with the (right) crowd. His offerings for both men and women, which often come in a palette of black, black and more black, are a chic and very Parisian interpretation of quiet luxury: sharp and elegant killer looks that make you stand out without trying too hard.

All this was on full display at Saint Laurent’s summer 2024 show, which was unveiled in Berlin on Monday night. The runway presentation took place at the Neue Nationalgalerie, a 55-year-old building designed by one of the masters of 20th-century modernist architecture: Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.

Vaccarello, who is an avowed fan of the 80s, opened the show with a series of louche exaggerated-shouldered suits that clearly meant business (whatever possibly shady business that may be), evoking modern-day gigolos with panache and swagger.

A chic suit is part of Saint Laurent’s take on “quiet luxury” for its summer 2024 men’s show held in Berlin, on June 12. Photo: Handout

The sharp tailoring was juxtaposed with silk shirts, sheer tops and polka dot blouses that were just the right amount of sexy. Vaccarello knows that showing just a hint of flesh can be just as titillating as revealing it all. He is also never afraid to play with androgyny.

This blurring of the lines caught the eye of American singer Conan Gray, who attended the show along with other celebrities such as Taiwanese singer Yoga Lin, Japanese model Kiko Mizuhara, and Vaccarello’s long-time muses Charlotte Gainsbourg and Anja Rubik.