MILAN — As the Italian fashion collections close each season, Armani and DSquared2 always make a rather odd pairing, representing in many ways the two poles of Milan fashion.
Armani, who celebrates 40 years of his fashion brand this year, was a founding protagonist of the Milan fashion scene, and has become a global fashion watchword by creating enduring looks, with a focus on detailing and elegance, not flash-by trends.
Dean and Dan Caten, the Canadian twins behind the 20-year-old DSquared2 label, are on the more extravagant end of the fashion spectrum, with audacious styles that cross the border into camp.
What they share is a vision for Milan that they are willing to invest in.
Armani is the fashion world’s ambassador to the world Expo 2015 opening May 1 in Milan, using his renown to promote the event to the fashion crowd. He is currently working on a retrospective exhibit to open on the eve of the world’s fair opening, along with a runway show of his greatest hits.
The Caten twins last year opened the rooftop restaurant Ceresio 7 above their Milan headquarters, which has quickly become one of the city’s hippest restaurants. With two swimming pools and a view of Milan’s new quarter of futuristic skyscrapers, it will be one of the places to see and be seen by the visiting Expo crowd.
At Armani, a trousers/skirt
Sometimes Armani comes up with something so new, refreshing and inventive that not even he knows what to call it.
So it was with a new trouser silhouette that on top resembled a sweeping skirt in the shape of a pair of tulip petals, then melded seamlessly into a tight-fitting pant-leg. They were paired with pretty swing coats, some decorated crystals, or a sloping high-collar sweater that had the effect of a contemporary casual poncho.
Pants were so much on Armani’s mind that of the more than 80 looks he sent out, fewer than 10 were skirts or dresses.
A velvet evening version working a skirt into the trouser was paired with tops of swirling chiffon or cropped jackets, while pants with a cummerbund waistline highlighted the crystal-dotted bustier. The looks were complemented by shimmery long-fringe shawls.
For Armani, the black evening pant is the season’s must-have. But when the occasion calls for a dress, there were long printed slip dresses with a diagonal band of black velvet sloping down to the hem and an eye-catching strapless chiffon dresses in red or cotton-candy pink with ruffled detailing at the bodice.
Giorgio Armani’s looks for next winter were infused with a gentleness inspired by paintings by Chagall, whose work was shown in a retrospective that closed recently in Milan.
Old world-new world
The looks at DSquared2 were an eclectic mix of American Indian dress mixed with European colonial-era attire, suggestive of conquest on many levels.
An elaborate admiral’s short-coat was worn over a boudoir-ready ruffle blouse and big-pocket jodhpur pants, while a military coat thrown over a laced-up mini-dress suggested trophy.
And so the collision of world’s pairings continued, with cropped trousers bearing golden sailor stripes worn with a feather-bedecked vest or fur coat with Native American symbols and an oversized hood. The larger-than-life hoods were seen previously in DSquared’s menswear collection.
Ah, la mamma
Dolce & Gabbana paid tribute to motherhood in full flower, sending an expectant mother swathed in pink down the runway against a backdrop of 11 mothers and their children.
Designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana kept the shapes simple, with flared skirts, wrap coats, shift dresses and some hip minis, and incorporated all of the brand’s sensual elements, including lace, sequins and appliques.
The designers endearingly turned drawings by their nieces and nephews into a colorful fabric for flared skirts, strapless dresses and scarves, scrawled with a child’s expressions of affection.
Regal warrior
Marni’s woman for next winter is a regal warrior, hailing from a region that stretches from the Nordic lands to the Mongolian plateau.
Creative director Consuelo Castiglioni kept the silhouette long, centering the collection around the coat, which formed the basis also of dresses and tunic tops worn with flared pants and neat skirts. All of the pieces shared a common architecture, long slits, that created an elegant air and allowed Castiglioni to play with the dramatic belting. On some coats, the thick leather belts ran inside the rear of the garment, leaving the back to flow as if a royal train.
Missoni taps a new vein
The family-run brand beloved for its zig-zag patterns appears to be reaching out for the younger set with a new marbled pattern, suggestive of veins and hinting of tattoos, that gave the looks an electric pulse, along with edgier styling and funkier footwear.
The T-shirt dresses of the finest knit were snug-fitting, often with athletic or asymmetrical necklines, and typically worn over body suits in complementary but contrasting patterns — including black-and-white patterns resembling lightning flashes. Designer Angela Missoni e,bellished the looks with metallic yarns for an urban street look. Colors ran from bright shades of purple, red and orange to more muted shades of light blue, gray and pink.
Neapolitan tailoring
“We don’t want to be trendy, or do runway shows,” said Maria Giovanna Paone on a tour of Kiton’s showroom showing the latest collection in three color-themed rooms, green, red and blue. Kiton, based in Naples, recently acquired the former headquarters of the Ferre fashion house in central Milan for its showroom and is a center for international client for fittings and styling.
Paone emphasizes the quality of the materials, vicuna wool and double cashmere, and examined the hand-stitched seams down on a green velvet tuxedo jacket for evening, paired with a ruffle blouse. Nearby, another model wore a coat and flared trousers out of a brushed cashmere plaid. All of the garments can be custom made, down to color and materials, in Kiton’s workshop near Naples, Paone said.
“Every woman has her own personality and she needs to express herself,” Paone said.
