In what is becoming something of a tradition, Lu’u Dan hosted what it calls “Sheisty Asia games” during its showroom days. And sure enough (whether conveniently timed to this visit or not), a group of guys were playing a dice game and betting with freshly printed Lu’u Dan dollars.
With previous seasons, this scene would reflect the darker, downtrodden characters whom Hung La imagined when conceiving his collections. As of this season, titled All Bets Are Off, he has changed the narrative and its protagonists. “Less doom and gloom and celebrate what winning looks like,” he said. In other words, he added, “more glamour, more prosperity.”
Make no mistake, the wardrobe is still giving main gangster energy. Call it a gangster glow-up. In the category of ostentatious but wearable were prints that overtly nodded to Versace along with a red tracksuit fully covered in rhinestones. Elsewhere, he toned down the snake motifs and bling. “I am attracted to mean characters, but I want it to be less performative,” he said, pointing to several looks in all black that revisited his standby “hourglass” silhouette as silky shirts with ultra A-line pants, now suited to a fine steakhouse dinner.
There were some peripheral pieces, like an oversized striped polo in the style of Tiger Woods, that had more to do with La confronting the clothes that make him cringe. “As a designer, you get to a point where you want to work on the things you hate,” he said. Cue his sardonic take on G-Star denim, a pair of red leather pants, cut slightly wider, but with ribbed panels that were an instant giveaway. Just to be clear, what’s his beef? “Actually,” he reflected, “It’s the guy who wears it, and now he’s the one we’re celebrating.”
La’s exploration of marginalized men has always been compelling, and there were surely clients—including high-profile athletes and music artists—who were attracted to this vibe. But as menswear leans into more polished dressing, he is smart to develop his own interpretation. A double-breasted suit in butter yellow, for example, was a better showcase for the tailoring he honed at Balenciaga and Celine. The full-length leopard coat in pony hair combined all his expertise into a single piece. When La put it on over his clothes, the broad, constructed shoulders gave way to a narrower silhouette.
His hustler wardrobe also carried a more profound layer. La’s father, who suggested the Lu’u Dan name (which means dangerous man in Vietnamese), has been placed in hospice care and La has been making regular visits between his home in London and D.C. The model he cast happens to look like his father. “This is my way of contributing to his legacy,” said the designer. “He has lived a beautiful life and I’m wanting to celebrate this, too.”
