Season 13 of ERL Is a Provocative Conceptualization of the Classic Prep Aesthetic

Summary

• ERL’s Season 13 collection titled “The Void” functions as an extension of the preppy aesthetic by filtering 1980s power dressing and Swiss alpine traditions through the raw and chaotic energy of California surf culture

• Traditional academic staples like dense wool tweeds and argyle knits are disrupted by technical nylon field jackets and redacted graphic dresses that symbolize a reclamation of institutional identity

• Footwear and accessories serve as a bridge between luxury and rebellion, featuring handcrafted crocodile mules and skunk fur accents that ground the high-society wardrobe in the designer’s signature Los Angeles spirit

The Fall/Winter 2026 menswear season saw Eli Russell Linnetz marked a major milestone with “The Void,” ERL’s 13th collection and its inaugural presentation in Paris. By filtering traditional East Coast and European collegiate codes through a distorted Los Angeles lens, Linnetz reimagines the “boarding school” uniform not as a static tradition, but as a subcultural costume. The collection is set in a conceptual Swiss mountain retreat, yet the soul of the clothing remains rooted in the sun-bleached irreverence of California. Here, the rigid structure of a “gilded cage” education is dismantled by the laid-back, chaotic energy of Venice Beach, transforming elitist dress codes into a new form of coastal cool.

This evolution of the “pre” aesthetic is defined by a heavy use of custom, dense 1980s-style tweeds and textured wools that echo the era of classic power dressing, yet these pieces are consistently subverted. Traditional waffle plaid blazers and oxford shirts are paired with nylon track shorts and reversible field jackets that lean more toward surf culture than Swiss formality. The typical “prep” markers—crests, argyles, and cable knits—are recontextualized as tools of infiltration. By merging these institutional symbols with “redacted” graphics and oversized, boyish silhouettes, ERL creates a version of “American Traditional” that feels reclaimed by an outsider who has breached the gates of the establishment.

The collection further pushes this hybrid identity into the realm of luxury footwear and accessories. Handcrafted leather loafers and exotic crocodile mules are injected with a sense of “careless luxury,” appearing alongside skunk fur hats and university beanies that blur the line between varsity pride and outlaw defiance. Season 13 is ultimately a celebration of the ERL universe’s expansion: a place where the polished world of privilege is intentionally unraveled by the raw, free-spirited energy of the Pacific coast.

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