Touching down at Milano Linate airport, one can hardly miss the Emporio Armani sign, above one of the the airplane hangars. The sign has been hanging there for more than twenty odd years, hardly half as long as Giorgio Armani himself is in the fashion business. The 80-plus-designer started his own fashion label after being a window dresser of the city's renowned La Rinascente, where even today, most of the luxury brands have their own corner. Armani is still the uncrowned king of Milan, but surely enough, and perhaps fortunately, new faces have arrived these last few seasons. One of the most talked about designers of the moment is Alessandro Michele, the creative director of Gucci, who for two seasons in a row has set the standard for a new Gucci woman (and man as well). Michele's granny chic is not only a hit on the catwalk and in fashion spreads of recent glossies, but his vision has led to knock offs, in every segment of the market, high and low. Gucci is happy with the way this is all going, for the brand could use some new blood (and some extra cash at the register), but even the Italian fashion industry is smiling, knowing the Gucci hype attracts more visitors to Milano Fashion Week. This season, Michele took on Catherine de Medici as his muse, letting her travel through time: it meant we saw some Renaissance aspects passing by (brocade coats, elaborate prints) but even the Seventies and the Eighties were around. "I love to mix and match", the designer said backstage, trying to explain the decoration overload. Michele also brought in New York based artist Trevor Andrew (aka GucciGhost) who had his way with drawings on certain garments. Fashion becoming art, quite literally.
fw2016 Gucci
fw2016 Gucci
To be honest: there are more Milan-based brands at MFW that give the Italian fashion scene new credit this season. Jeremy Scott, the American creative director at the helm of Moschino, let us into his crazy setting (full of derelict furniture and carpets, supposedly leftovers after a huge fire) and showed a powerful and energetic collection: first some bad girls who might have put fire to the fantastic evening dresses the models at the end of the show were wearing - as if some of the garments really had been in a fire.
fw2016 Moschino
fw2016 Moschino
Scott has his way with the Moschino heritage, and really does a great job. So does Massimo Georgetti at Pucci. The designer runs MSGM as well, but in his Pucci parade, he clearly showed he can handle more labels and different takes on fashion at one time. The colourful prints stood out on the catwalk, even in the wrinkled version. Georgetti brought in new forms as well: large pullovers and huge baseball jackets over pleated skirts, to name just one very prominent look (and a trend).
fw2016 Pucci
fw2016 Pucci
At Roberto Cavalli, the new creative director Peter Dundas came up with a series of complex overstated looks that fit perfectly in the Cavalli universe. His woman turns out to be a glam-rock gypsy sporting long brocade-infused coats and velvet trousers. Backstage, Dundas mentioned Orientalism, The Thirties, but also Led Zeppelin and Gustav Klimt, making his references an ocean of ideas to pick from. The result however looked great, and will definitely make a true Cavalli customer happy.
fw2016 Roberto Cavalli
fw2016 Roberto Cavalli
Another show that caught our attention, is No.21. Alessandro dell'Aqua, the creative director, may be over 40, but is still hailed as one of Milan's bright young talents. This time, he came up with some grungy looks, featuring layers of shirt, pullover, skirt, overjacket. His play with masculine versus feminine gave most of the girls a particular attitude, some of which felt quite over the top.
fw2016 N°21
That said, Milan Fashion Week can't be missed because of just one show: Prada. Again Miuccia Prada left us all dazzled and mesmerized, after a show that never missed its point. Miuccia used to be very politically focused ( as a twentysomething she was flirting with the communist party) but this time especially, she took today's world (the migration problems in Europe, the big gap between the rich and the poor) and translated this into a wardrobe for a woman she herself called a vagabond backstage. Layering elements one on top of the other (as if some of the girls on stage were fleeing to another life, having even several handbags at one time), even adding a corset on top a warm winterjacket, never looked ridiculous. On the contrary: this was a show that left the audience in total awe, witnessing how fashion can be a mirror of what is going on in today's society.
fw2016 Prada
fw2016 Prada
My personal favourites may seem to go from one end to the other, but they do have several things in common. I absolutely loved the Max Mara show, focusing on Dada, constructivism and modernism, themes that always attract my attention, and not only because women often were the driving force in these art movements. There were some Bauhaus references, and there was lots of dynamic between sound, colour and pattern, patchworks being the most prominent (obvious) tool to translate the theme to the collection.
fw2016 Max Mara
I was almost moved by how Donatella Versace made her show stand out. In a big circle, the models walked round and round. First there was daywear, featuring lots of trousers (skipants!), jackets and blue tones, next came eveningwear, with dresses that clearly stated the Versace touch: feminine and sexy, yet extremely well cut. The colour combinations were key, as was the mix of a wonderfully chosen flower print.
fw2016 Versace
fw2016 Versace
My absolute number one show was the Marni one on Sunday morning. Every silhouette was beautiful, wearable even, not that wearability is key for me. Consuelo Castiglione just turned out a bunch of beautiful ensembles mixing fabrics, touching up with paillettes and playing with larger volumes, the way she often does. Here was a woman walking the town. Feeling good in her body. Accepting her flaws, so to speak. And always in tune with elegance.
fw2016 Marni
fw2016 Marni
The Italian fashion industry is doing quite well: recent figures talk about double digit growth in 2015 compared to the year before. But what's more: the Italian government seems to have understood the importance of the fashion business in this country. On the first day of MFW, all important players, from Giorgio Armani to Diego Della Valle (owner of Fay, Tod's and Hogan) and Renzo Rosso (owner of Diesel and Maison Margiela) were present at a luncheon, in honour of Italy's current prime minister Matteo Renzi, the former mayor of Florence. "The world is asking for fantasy and beauty", he said in his speech."We should never think fashion is a divertissement for few". Anna Wintour, editor in chief of American Vogue, who sat next to Renzi, must have agreed.
