The road between private and non-private dissolves in Carlota Barrera’s spring 2026 assortment, an exploration that redefines the boundaries of menswear, by means of what she calls “the idea of intimacy.” “We’ve been working with one thing that’s often unseen, or selecting very selectively who we share it with,” the designer defined. “I believe we’re at some extent the place intimacy has been commodified, so we wished to offer it a tangible type.”
The designer reimagined the language of lingerie by means of the lens of tailoring and a distinctly masculine sensibility: adjustable straps, sheer materials, hid fastenings, and inside constructions that convey the unseen to mild. That play between concealment and publicity revealed itself by means of particulars solely noticeable up shut: topstitching that recalled stocking seams, unfastened ribbons that evoked garters. “We wished to convey collectively these two seemingly reverse worlds and discover the place they overlap,” she mentioned, noting how the model integrated designs that in the first place look gave the impression to be one factor after which turned out to be one other. “There are at all times delicate trompe-l’oeils. In a traditional tuxedo trouser, as an illustration, we added a stripe, then layered it with lingerie-inspired components harking back to the fastening of a corset or a bra.”
Exposing pores and skin was a vital a part of the method, “by means of translucent layers and materials like tulle,” she famous—a means of weaving transparency into the model’s visible language. “With the tailor-made jackets, we took these concepts to the restrict—the female and the masculine—stripping away inside constructions and experimenting with new textures,” Barrera defined. It created surprising intersections.
That sense of duality prolonged to the palette, the place timeless black and white have been joined by shades that introduced richness and depth. “There’s nude and brown, and in addition orange. It felt like the right match, including a up to date vitality to the summer time assortment. With out it, one thing was lacking,” she famous. “After we started speaking concerning the assortment, all the things felt too mushy. We wished to discover intimacy with out falling into that saccharine clichés.” The outcome was a delicate interaction of opposition, ambiguity, and transgression.
