by Ada Maria Francesca Romeo
Yves Saint Laurent is rewriting the rules of classic men’s footwear. Set to become one of the season’s most talked-about accessories, the shoes unveiled for the SS27 collection under Anthony Vaccarello‘s creative direction had already sparked conversation before the runway lights even came on.
The first glimpse came directly from Vaccarello himself, who teased the design on social media: a sharply pointed lace-up shoe crafted entirely from rigid transparent plastic. The style is the menswear evolution of the transparent TPU pumps introduced in Saint Laurent’s previous womenswear collection, a timeless silhouette reimagined through a bold, provocative material. According to Vaccarello, wearing them with socks would completely defeat their purpose.
While some praise the Saint Laurent’s design as one of the season’s most sensual and daring fashion statements, others can only imagine the discomfort—or rather, the smell—calling them impractical and not inviting. Meanwhile, social media has exploded with memes, turning the transparent shoes into one of Paris Fashion Week‘s biggest viral moments and the pair everyone seems to have an opinion on.