Fashion is a Serious Thing
In a balance between creativity and accounting
There is no time to stop and reflect. Thoughts must coincide exactly with looks, without wasting a moment. The fashion carousel imposes timing that is quick and simple. The exchange of input and information is as rapid as a post on Instagram. This is how the aesthetic vortex of dressing works. A constant whirlwind of solicitations to which submitting oneself is pleasant. Diving into and being carried away by the flow becomes a true pleasure – a flow that is particularly intense and engaging during that time of the year when everything revolves around the most important events of all: fashion weeks. New York opened the dances with a number of runway shows, in a continuous and almost unmanageable crescendo, followed unabated by the catwalks in Milan, which slightly preceded the Parisian ones. In the global village, where distances are shorter and accessibility becomes transversal and democratic, it is necessary to propose collections that involve as many consumers as possible, achieving the desirable combination between creativity and market, an obsession and the main discriminating factor towards proclaiming the success of a brand. The rapid and constant change in our society, and in the values that govern it, is also detected in what we decide to wear, a matter of inevitable consistency and a sense of contemporaneity, which finds solutions in the choice of something and in its opposite. For all tastes and for every moment. Emotions that confront and contradict each other, finding a point of contact in diversity, a kaleidoscopic ensemble, a manifesto of the savoir-faire of the Maison in question. Lights and shadows: rationalist geometries that coexist with delicate floral bouquets, while good girl bon-ton pieces take on a masculine look through outerwear, preferring warm tweeds with a rough appearance. A cocoon effect for knits: tricots in heather grey, jacquards with Scandinavian patterns, ribbed, stripes and polka dots, wearing warmth. Luxury, in an extreme version, is interpreted by lots of fur, alongside its eco rendition: glamour. Then, crystals, yesteryear brocades, and golden brilliances, which evoke the ardour for a bourgeois sense of well-being, validated by the enfant terrible, Alessandro Michele, creative director for Gucci who, fully into the elite of fashion, and acknowledged with awards and various accolades, even in business, along with being responsible for the return of lurex, once again, plays with dolls and becomes the new Hedi Slimane. Highly imitated and the tireless creator of must-haves and wish-lists, with a way of understanding fashion, attentive in the use of social networks, and in line with the Zeitgeist, where tablets and smartphones become the new influencers, although nice to leave behind to enjoy a given moment. Yet, fashion is revolution and turnover and here, within Milan Fashion Week, new recruits with a fervid imagination make their entrance: For the first time on the runways: Diesel Black Gold, Atsushi Nakashima, Lucio Vanotti, Giada, Mario Dice, and Piccione.Piccione, a brand from the new wave of Italian fashion, and Ujoh, Giorgio Armani’s guest designer, the most interesting revelation of the season, one to look out for. A full, rich calendar that, in addition to the fashion shows, included ninety presentations spread around town – to which we have dedicated a section – discovered in ateliers and dedicated areas, such as Gianluca Capannolo who, a second before launching his collection onto the catwalk, recounted the evolution of his style with an infectious enthusiasm, and also Giulia Marani, following in her father’s footsteps, a nonconformist and with a clear vision of what fashion means to new generations: freedom.
Decio Vitali
Collezioni Donna n.170 a/w 2016/17
