COMMISSION
The New York label started as a womenswear brand, launched in 2018 by three friends, Dylan Cao, Jin Kay and Huy Luong, with common roots in their East Asian and Southeast Asian upbringing. The trio quickly gained attention for their take on ’80s and ’90s Asian Mum style— looks inspired by the ones you’d see if you flip through your parents’ photo albums. Think pencil skirts and padded shoulders, and prints inspired by couch covers, tablecloths, curtains, tiles and other staples in Asian households.
For fall/winter 2021, the designers launched menswear for the first time and the offering sits comfortably in the Commission universe they have built. The aesthetic is not so much about an Asian Dad look as it is an evocation of the way Asian men dressed in the ’70s: Boxy tailoring, Communist suits, knit polos tucked into belted, high-waisted trousers or straight-cut jeans, silky shirts in red or leopard print, a little leather bag for the belongings. You could practically picture the pieces on the anti-hero in a Wong Kar Wai film.
The strength of the Commission designers lie in their ability to take the chintz and the kitsch and turn them into chic. They dabble in nostalgia, but the output isn’t retro nor costumey, but wholly contemporary. This is a credit to their strongly developed sense of restraint and refinement—they know when to play it straight and when to subvert. And now, made even more evident by their first menswear collection, they really know how to cut a jacket and a pair of trousers.