Models, designers, fashionistas and celebrities descended on the newly opened Dongdaemun Design Plaza and Park to take note of Korea’s hottest fashion trends for the upcoming 2015 spring-summer season, as the six-day extravaganza of runway shows kicked off Friday.

Seoul Fashion Week, a biannual fashion festival in its 15th year, opened to a large crowd from home and abroad with menswear collections on Friday and Saturday. Both top and up-and-coming Korean designers are presenting 85 fashion shows inside the futuristic and curvilinear building during the week.

Emerging and leading menswear designers presented wearable and practical collections in step with the industry tendency to set increasing footlights on menswear. The following are some of the two-day highlights of menswear collections.

Jung Du-young of VanHart di Albazar took the opening runway stage of the festival with his signature brand concept, which combines Neoclassicism in the mid-18th century and classic Italian style together to craft modern and chic style. Inspired by Italian futurist painter Giacomo Balla, models presented his brightly colored, clean cut looks under the main theme ‘the coexistence of the present and the future.’

The designer’s collection of easy streetwears characterized by light and fun colors included bright blue jackets and orange trench jackets.

Actress Clara stunned the audience in the finale of Jung’s runway by revealing her midriff in a dark blue organza shirt and a shoulder-robed extra-long suit jacket.

The much anticipated show of young designer Ko Tae-yong was all about a rebellious preppy look on Friday.

Under the theme of high school gangs, the designer showcased varsity jackets with an embroidered tattoo on the back, patchwork leather blazers and basketball jerseys to add to the street and sporty looks.

The designer showed off his creations through glitzy young K-pop idols. Kang Seung-yoon and Song Min-ho of YG Entertainment’s new boy group WINNER sauntered down the runway as Zico of K-pop boy band Block B kept it lively by directing the music himself.

“Ko definitely displayed his manga and bad boy image this season,” commented a Korean fashion reporter during the show. “His clothes are very casual and fun, which are popular with the younger generation.”

Designer Kim Seo-ryong of the eponymous brand, who is well-known for designing outfits of singer Psy for his popular song “Gangnam Style,” presented a collection of classic suits with different textures and range of colors.

Kim has added a feminine touch to his retro tailoring, from a color palette ranging from achromatic colors to light pink and dark burgundy, giving a sweet spring look. A loosely fit trouser and a light silk shirt made his classic line of suits comfortable yet effortlessly stylish.

Black and white dominated the Cy Choi collection presented by designer Choi Chul-yong, set on the theme “Paradise.” The designer attempted to put a 3-D image of stone and skull ― representing fear, death and pleasure ― into a 2-D image to freely illustrate the theme through black and white geometric shapes.

Lee Ju-yong’s collection “Resurrection” cast a unique style of casual and masculine look against electronic background music to give an industrial vibe. She used translucent fabrics, including sheer, mesh and organza, in masculine garments to create an androgynous style. Lee peppered neutral shades of clothes with baggy pleated pants and voluminous shirts to give them an artistic yet wearable silhouette, making a unique and edgy collection.

“Korean clothes are really popular in Hong Kong,” said a buyer from Hong Kong, who owns shops in Beijing and Shanghai, during the show. “The simple and chic styles of Korean menswear are loved by many, especially Cy Choi and Resurrection.”

Seoul Fashion Week runs through Oct. 22 at DDP in central Seoul. For lineups of fashion shows and details, visit www.seoulfashionweek.org

By Ahn Sung-mi (sahn@heraldcorp.com)