In 1971, a photographer named Fred Prysquel began screen-printing sea turtles on oversized military trousers cut in Saint-Tropez and accidentally created Camshaft. The idea was quite simple: make swimwear a little more fun, a little more glamorous and a lot more French. For a while, it worked. Men bought logs the way they bought sunglasses or linen shirts, as part of a summer life they aspired to rather than one they already had. Then came the long reign of the short board. For the better part of two decades, the beaches of Malibu were filled with knee-length nylon banners that flapped around the men’s legs. Most were too long, many were too loud, and almost all looked as though they had been purchased with about 30 seconds of consideration. Somewhere along the way, swimwear became one of the few categories in a grown man’s wardrobe where taste seemed optional.
This has changed. The bottom lines are constantly creeping up. The best trunks now borrow their proportions from tailoring, their fabrics from performance gear and their details from clothing designed to be worn somewhere other than a pool deck. Even short swimming, long restricted to competitive swimmers and Europeans with a higher tolerance for public scrutiny, is back in circulation. Scandalous cutouts aside, any good swimsuit should dry before the check arrives, sit snugly at the waist, and survive the transition from swim platform to lunch without looking like you forgot to get dressed. Of course, the right pair depends on where you’re going. The restrained solids that disappear effortlessly into a beach club in Saint-Tropez may feel strangely shy a boat in the Cyclades or a weekend in St. Barthswhere little color gains its passage. What matters is that choice still exists. The 22 styles below are proof that men’s swimwear has become a statement piece for the first time in years.
