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Today’s hype-fueled fashion landscape yields a mountain of fresh menswear every month. Which is why every issue of GQ now includes The Drops, a guide to the best of the best new gear as it hits stores. This summer it's time to get freaky with your patterns and prints. It's all about bright colors and bold designs, from your swim trunks to your summer suit.
Two years after flooding America's beaches with Verner Panton-emblazoned shorts, Dries Van Noten has incorporated experimental filmmaker Len Lye's celluloid prints into another round of Bermudas ($340).
This season, Ralph Lauren—who is sartorially at home on the ranch, at sea, or at the opera—went on safari with a line of Purple Label linen jackets (and matching accessories) in a wild, exclusive zebra print (jacket, $2,995, and shirt, $495).
Those who think “beautiful business suits” when they think Ermenegildo Zegna haven't checked in lately on Alessandro Sartori, who has introduced an exquisite sense of casual elegance into the brand with pieces like this cropped tie-dyed blouson ($1,495).
Think of Acne Studios' cactus-covered cap as a cowboy hat you can wear poolside ($179).
Donatella Versace has been heavily mining the house's archive for inspiration—to Medusa fans' delight. The oceanic print on this plissé shirt-and-shorts kit is adapted from her brother Gianni's iconic spring 1992 “Trésor de la Mer” collection (shirt and shorts, $1,895 each, by Versace).
When it comes to sunglasses that'll break necks at the summer barbecue, go to Alain Mikli, the man who made Kanye West's iconic shutter shades back in 2007 ($400 per pair).
In case there was any doubt that pottery is the fashion world's next big obsession, Berluti's Kris Van Assche collaborated with L.A.-based ceramist Brian Rochefort on a collection inspired by the artist's oozy, primordial sculptures ($1,550).
Basquiat and Haring contemporary Kenny Scharf dipped a toe into fashion in 1992, when the O.G. East Village painter teamed up with Stephen Sprouse. Almost 30 years later, Dior Men's Kim Jones turned Scharf's bugged-out dreamworld into a pair of collectible trousers ($2,900).
Throw on one of Marni's oversized psychedelic floral shirts to instantly fall down the rabbit hole of Francesco Risso's fashion wonderland ($490).
Thom Browne alum Kozaburo Akasaka takes a futuristic approach to his suits: They're made in Japan out of breathable polyester and emblazoned with what he calls Galactic Camo (shirt, $465, and pants, $345, by Kozaburo).
American designer Ken Scott lived in Milan in the '60s, becoming known there as the “fashion gardener” for his sublime floral prints, which this season are blossoming all over these Gucci lids ($530).
Junya Watanabe protégé Yosuke Aizawa has established White Mountaineering as one of Japan's great avant-garde outdoor brands, thanks to pieces like this teched-out tie-dyed shirt ($320).
For his latest collection, Gypsy Sport designer Rio Uribe turned boxer shorts into a love letter to the evocative artistry of Chicano tattoo culture ($75).
London-based Qasimi uses sharp sportswear to promote Middle Eastern sartorial codes. This cropped bomber is made with al sadu fabric, which is traditionally woven by Bedouin women ($931).
The perfect summer blazer is a maddeningly hard thing to find. Or it was until Emporio Armani unveiled this argyle-checked jacket constructed from a delicate breathable mesh (jacket, $1,995, and tank top, $475).
You don't have to live in Sweden to join the Stockholm Surfboard Club, which was founded by a couple of former Acne employees. You just have to pick up a pair of the brand's perfectly short swim shorts ($155).
Handmade in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, Judy Turner's cotton-silk sweater proves that the sleeveless knit is the most crucial piece in your summer rotation ($495).
There are big pants, and then there are Needles' downright enormous BDU H.D. pants, which have achieved grail status due to the styling possibilities unlocked by their outrageous volume and multiple cinch points ($390).
In 2017, Undercover joined forces with Vans to make a cult-favorite sneaker covered with tiny blossoms. At long last, the brand has birthed its own follow-up, and this time the flowers are thriving ($409).
A version of this story originally appeared in the June 2021 issue with the title "20 Wild Patterns and Huge Prınts That Win Summer."
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PRODUCTION CREDITS:
Photographs by Martin Brown
Prop stylist: Dustin Hubbs At Mark Edward Inc
