PERMU
How Heyun Pan has created a bridge between untouched natural beauty and modern day technology.
Arguably the breakthrough brand of 2023 London fashion week, Heyun Pan’s contemporary menswear brand has completely caught my attention. Amidst the congestion of the ever-popular fashion event of the season, it seems that PERMU was, in my opinion, communicating with a young adult audience; with their dedication not only to sustainable and green fashion, but using the beauty of our natural world to inspire their entire collection. Pan claims that he aimed for a ‘connection between garment, body and nature’, raising the question as to wether garments could be described as language for the body; if we connect them to nature, do we provide them with contextual meaning that allows us to connect with, and therefore communicate using, our clothes? I find the brands concept entirely in tune with, and up to date with, the modern fashion landscape, suggesting a quiet commitment to sustainability, and a greener view of how exactly we should be conceptualising fashion. It feels as though Pan is suggesting the very beauty that people desperately search for in commercialised modern life is actually right in front of them. After reading the brands London Fashion Week promotional portfolio, I feel that PERMU is suggesting industrialised life characterises itself using mass spectacle, especially with evolving and fast-paced influencer and media culture, leading our fashion (and subsequent sense of identity) to lack a sense of authenticity. Not only are they taking inspiration from human and natural worldly forms, but are also using all natural pigment, bio-pigment, recycled materials, further suggesting PERMU’s awareness of not only the evolving fashion sphere, but also the social, political and cultural demands on out current fashion landscape. Pan suggests that he is attempting to ‘Sculpt the contours of life’s curves and decorate the heart’ through customisation, and the collection very much feels to be celebrating the natural curves of the human body. The brands design process uses basic pattern cutting, using continuous strips of fabric cut from the front to the back of the body, which I feel successfully creates a seamless and elegant look on the male body, which both celebrates human curves and enhances them; it feels as though Heyun Pan’s designs are created to compliment the human physique.
I think that the success of PERMU is also partly down to innovation, and willingness to work with technological advances of modern fashion landscape; using 3d modelling, animation, and virtual wardrobes. Looking at their most recent collection, which was praised by Women’s Wear Daily, in Goldstones ‘ones to watch report’, there seems to be an overriding sense of minimalism driving the brands aethstetic, with cool/earthy tones completed with sporadic nods of royal blue and purple aiding the overall notion of PERMU’s celebration of natural, untinctured beauty. One could argue that, in conjunction with the brands celebration of the modern world, there is a feeling of gender fluidity; despite it formally being a menswear brand, there is almost a sense of feminity veiling their current runway, and ready to wear, collection. Visions of female silhouettes (tailored waist darts, curves and cutouts focused in the hip/torso area, accentuation of the body’s natural curves) paired with mesh, skintight tops and trousers adorned with skirts. It feels considered for our modern day landscape, wherein androgynous and gender fluid identities are celebrated, and catered to this growing public desire to dress for joy, entertainment, creativity and novelty rather than using garments as a gender affirming source. I feel as though there’s a replacement, and fusion, of different and opposing styles that have created something fresh. Undoubtedly PERMU has left a lasting impression on me, and as I continue to follow the brand, and further invest in the consequences of their decisions, I am excited to see how they further their impact in the modern fashion world.