As Seoul has a reputation for fashionable men whose devotion to fashion and skincare tops in the world, menswear collections by Seoul-based designers are some of the must-see shows during Seoul Fashion Week.

K-pop stars rocked the 2016 spring-summer menswear shows on Friday and Saturday. R&B singer Zion.T, singer Gangnam and movie stars stole the spotlight in the front rows. Bora of girl group Sistar unusually took the runway of menswear designer Jung Doo-young’s VanHart di Albazar.

Here are the highlights of the weekend’s menswear shows.

Munsoo Kwon

One of the hottest emerging menswear designers in the Korean fashion scene, Munsoo Kwon presented light, sporty looks for the 2016 spring-summer season on Saturday.

Inspired by some youngsters turning to fishing instead of finding office jobs, Kwon’s collection was a stylish guide for young anglers. Models walked comfortably in lightweight seersucker summer suits -- blazer and short pants. A towering baseball cap -- reminiscent of the bulging belly of a fish -- added humor to the otherwise usual men’s summer look. He gave accents to trench coats and suits with neon color-stripes, which Suzy Menkes, international vogue editor, called “K-pop colors” after the show.

“He was clever to use K-pop colors like stripes in this collection,” she said. 

The sporty vibe ran throughout the show with sweatshirts and pants, featuring Kwon’s creative fishing-inspired prints. The prints proved again that he is a genius of creating witty symbols that embeds his fun personality in his clothes. Cardigans featuring key prints for the 2014 fall-winter collection were a big hit last year.

VanHart di Albazar

Designer Jung Doo-young, a mastermind of Italian style tailored suits added airy and breezy vibes to his 2016 spring-summer collection. 

Themed as “Creation of Adam” by Italian Renaissance painter Michelangelo Buonarroti, his collection showed a renaissance in neutral men’s fashion and its limited color palettes. Pastel pink and sky blue in chesterfield coats and trench coats warmed up the spring collection, which presented more relaxed silhouettes than his previous collections. 

Bora of the girl group Sistar took the runway in transparent chiffon skirt topped with warm gray knit sweater as the solo female model.

Kimseoryong

Designer Kim Seo-ryong’s signature tailored suits featuring flamboyant color prints opened the show, signaling a tropical spring for urban men. Sleeveless jumpsuits, knit pullovers instantly took viewers to their imaginary holiday destinations. Kim didn’t let down audiences expecting to see his signature double-breasted suits, which this time featured small dynamic diamond-shaped patterns.

Beom 

Designer Kim Beom launched the brand in 2012 and debuted in the generation next section of the Seoul Fashion Week. The designer, with a background in graphic design, worked his way up to a managerial position at a design firm, but suddenly quit everything to explore fashion.

Graphic design elements add a unique personality to his menswear design, inspired by fish and swelling sea waves. The music and stage design attempted to create a deep-sea ambience. Artistic fishermen emerged in multilayered pants and mesh tops and sweatshirts, featuring fish-inspired graphic prints.

By Lee Woo-young  (wylee@heraldcorp.com)