Tailored Expositions: Ralph Lauren Fall/Winter 2026 Collection

Ralph Lauren returned a dedicated menswear show to Milan’s runway after a 24-year absence from the city with his Fall/Winter 2026 collection, in which the preppy essence of Polo Ralph Lauren ran alongside the sober elegance of the brand’s Purple Label, a contrast between urban energy and architectural rigour. The show took place in the courtyard of Palazzo Ralph Lauren. The return to the city, and the conspicuously small space in which the runway took place, signals a move away from fashion as entertainment toward fashion as craft. Although classic in style, the techniques and textiles take the garments presented beyond simple weaving and knitting. It is not only the beauty of the outer layer that should draw you to the garment, but the hyper-engineered fabrics: vicuña-alpaca blends, indigo denim, silk and velvet corduroy, and double-faced cashmere -which is hand-split and sewn to eliminate seams, making the garment lighter yet warmer.   

 In addition to his collaboration with TOPA and Neil Zarama, which highlighted indigenous craftmanship, Ralph Lauren was inspired by “the different ways men live, their individuality, and personal style”, which results in designs that reflect the designer’s belief in the world as he knows it: classy, elegant, and logical. The wondrous masculinity in the garments, mixed with the aesthetic coherence of the historical study that flows throughout -with clothing that sometimes recalls Regency-period style- entwines the modern and the restrained, like a woven weft and warp, to create a collection that is truly Suited and Booted.