Moschi-yes. Moschino AW24

Adrian Appiolaza‘s Moschino debut collection felt like a gush of much-needed fresh air in Milan – and the beginning of a very promising, new chapter. The brand needed an urgent revamp after a decade of Jeremy Scott’s camp over-the-topness. In November, the heart-breaking passing of Davide Renne (who became the forth creative director of Franco Moschino’s label just a month earlier), shocked the entire fashion industry. Appiolaza’s appointment was announced barely a month ago, and his first collection – completed in such short period of time – proves that he’s a supremely talented designer. The autumn-winter 2024 collection reflects the tongue-in-cheek spirit of the brand’s founder through a number of riffs and referenced: the over-sized silhouettes, XXL polka-dots and tomato prints, Rene Magritte-esque prints and the in-your-face flag of Italy used as the colour blocking palette for a couple of dresses and tops. Appiolaza also managed to convey the nearly-forgotten, super-chic spirit of the house which was contrived by Rosella Jardini in the 2000s: think slip-dresses covered in pearl necklaces or finely cut tailoring. But the line-up tells us a lot about Appiolaza himself, who for a decade worked at Loewe, and earlier with such creatives as Clare Waight Keller, Marc Jacobs and Miuccia Prada. The Buenos Aires-born designer is an avid vintage fashion collector – make sure to follow his page on Instagram! – with a soft spot for Martin Margiela and Comme Des Garçons. There’s an interesting connection between Moschino and Margiela – both designers played with surrealism and deconstruction, but in aesthetically different ways. Appioloza showed a bustier made from ties; trench coats worn inside-out; hats that looked like paper boats. Those little moments of humor are what Moschino used to be in its origins, and the new creative director certainly embraces that in a stylish, unconstrained way. Bravissimo!