Alessandro Sartori is redefining ZEGNA and as he embarks on its new era with the help of the likes of Mr. Bailey, he has now welcomed The Elder Statesman into his atelier to create his latest collaboration.
Sneaking their debut during Winter 2023 at ZEGNA’s ‘The Oasi of Cashmere’ show, Sartori and Greg Chait delivered a capsule that brought the duo’s respective worlds together. Masculine luxury and timeless class intersect with Californian ease and the results are finally ours to analyze in the collaboration lookbook.
With craftsmanship at the core of this capsule, ZEGNA and The Elder Statesman craft everything from cashmere — one of, if not the best material to work and wear in the world. In this way, the House reinforces its promise to dress its men in clothes that are made to last and want to live in, bucking trends with clothes that are as soft on the eye as they are on the touch.
Throughout the collection, you’ll find plaid — a nod to California’s surf and skate culture and their shared love of sun-bleached jerseys. ZEGNA takes this idea and applies it to everything, wrapping in coats, workwear-inspired tops, trousers, scarves and more traditional button-down shirts. The colors are quintessentially The Elder Statesman, lighting up bright oranges, greens, yellows and blues, just like a Los Angeles sunset.
The worn corduroys are made from cashmere, subverting another tasteful piece of the Californian lifestyle with luxury in the spotlight. Lilac, bacca red, green, aurora yellow, green and vicuna are used as a palette here, sometimes saturated and at others muted to balance the collection intended for indoor, outdoor, living room or sophisticated use — see this bright orange suit is relaxed for the best example of this hybrid approach to dressing.
Completing the world of ease from ZEGNA and The Elder Statesman are bucket hats and fitted baseball caps in felted cashmere, brushed cashmere and the star of the show, a zip-up cardigan with various designs and patterns similar to The Elder Statesman. aesthetic signature.
Speaking about the collaboration, ZEGNA Artistic Director Alessandro Sartori said: “Dialogues like this allow us to add new layers to our world, finding other expressions in Oasi Cashmere. We worked on this collection completely together, merging our shapes with the distinctive colors and spontaneity of The Elder Statesman. It’s the very idea of cross-pollination, something that happens at Oasi Zegna as a natural organization and can be turned into a business and creative model that allows us to reach a new audience.”
Chait added: “We are honored to work with what we believe to be one of the best brands and manufacturers in the world. At the beginning of this collaboration are two companies that value the way things are made. In fact, sometimes we feel like ZEGNA’s wacky cousins setting up shop in Los Angeles, bringing a centuries-old art to the new world. This collaboration feels like a homecoming and after two and a half years of deep and meaningful discussions with ZEGNA, the collection we designed together is a symptom of something much bigger: recognition of quality, craftsmanship and deep mutual respect. 6,000 miles away from Oasi Zegna (in Piedmont Italy) is our factory in downtown Los Angeles, an Oasis of our own making.”
The ZEGNA and The Elder Statesman collection can be seen in the lookbook above and will be available in key ZEGNA boutiques, through The Elder Statesman retail channels and selected wholesale partners from September 2023.
In other news, Saint Laurent has perfected its study of silhouettes for Winter 2023.