Understated Eclecticism. Jil Sander SS24

September 25, 2023 | Design & Culture by Ed

Jil Sander – the designer – is a minimalist, but Jil Sander – the contemporary brand – is minimalist no more. Backstage of their eclectic spring-summer 2024 fashion show in Milan, Lucie and Luke Meier explained that their collection was a study of shapes. The two knit dresses were examples of that with their clingy ribbed bodices blossoming below the waist into fuller skirts. Rhinestone necklaces signaled that the brand is open to a bit of opulent bling. Experiments with shapes were further translated in tailoring: the designers cut jackets as boxy as squares and paired them with sailor-collar shirts and shorts to accentuate the silhouette. Or else they elongated their lines, showing duster coats on the guys and extending the men’s jackets nearly to the knees while raising the waistband of baggy shorts well past the navel. There was a looseness to their approach to tailoring; it suggested that they feel freer to play than they did in their earlier days at the label. That freer sensibility held true of other categories too. Button-down shirts were accessorized with metal discs on their collar points, like built-in jewelry, and vests came with twin portholes on the upper chest outlined in the same polished chrome. The portholes were a little on the large side, but you appreciated the instinct. No quibbles with the giant cat face prints on a couple of tunic dresses.

Collage by Edward Kanarecki.
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Work In Progress. Ferragamo SS24

September 24, 2023 | Design & Culture by Ed

Maximilian Davis‘ Ferragamo is a work-in-progress, which isn’t a bad thing. Spring-summer 2024 reads as a rather new direction taken by the young creative director, which proves he doesn’t work on a formula – as most of designers in Milan. No Gancini motif, no Hollywood angle, no oversized cutout bags, pretty much no Ferragamo red. Three shows in, Davis is learning while doing, and he isn’t scared to experiment. A refined palette of black, white, and green defined the collection that was all about investment wardrobe building-blocks. Sleek black suits walked the runway with fragile waistlines and open-air sleeves, but there were also some eccentricities, like wooden beading applied in wide belts and statement vintage-y prints. Still, I couldn’t help but count all the similarities to Phoebe Philo’s final collection for Céline. I’m so looking forward to Philo’s return this season… But back to Ferragamo for a minute. Leather car coats in deep green were satisfying, just as V-neck pullovers and pocketed cargo pants. Figure-shaping dresses restructured the human form. Caped versions revealed refined chest structures in motion, completing the 64-look collection with a series of sheer garments featuring intriguingly sculpted edges. There’s certainly a spark about Davis’ take on Ferragamo. But he still needs time to truly polish his sensitivity.

What Is Essential Is Visible To The Eye – But Not To Everyone. Tod’s SS24

September 24, 2023 | Design & Culture by Ed

Probably the worst thing about the fashion industry and its people with big pockets is that there’s no patience. Designers who are appointed as creative directors of luxury brands that need a dust-off are given far too little time to develop their sensibilities and seduce new clients, and after about two, at most three years, become disposable in the eyes of the houses’ owners. That’s what unfortunately happened at the Diego Della Valle-owned Tod’s, where designer Walter Chiapponi was on a really great path of making the brand actually mean something in contemporary times. His last collection for the brand was at the same time his best, and you can just imagine where he would take it next. While taking his final bow, the designer’s white worker’s shirt was emblazoned with the following adage: “The essential is visible to the eyes, but not for everyone, nor even to understand everything”. The subject of the phrase is drawn from The Little Prince, but when applied under the context of Chiapponi’s departure, it has a new dimension that can be easily applied to the entire industry.

Presented against the mise-en-scene of unfinished set pieces and production for an upcoming performance of Don Carlos, Chiapponi placed this collection in-situ amongst scenographers, sculptors and carpenters to highlight the innate workmanship inherent to every Tod’s piece. The collection drew on masculine codes prominent in the 90s, where minimalist tailoring, leatherwork and knitwear reigned supreme. Over 44 looks, the designer – with some help from stylist Brian Molloy – reimagined wardrobe staples – a pleated skirt accented by harness motifs or shirting with inverted collars to appear like they’re worn backwards – through a softly feminine lens. As always, the accessories are exemplary of the Made in Italy prestige, including lurid chartreuse mules, Gammino moccasins and a new woven sandal that smooths the harsh interlacing fisherman sandal for a metropolitan appeal. However, it is the labour’s work belt reenvisioned as a utilitarian accessory that serves as the proverbial pièce de résistance for a collection advocating for a craft-led approach to fashion. This saddle-shaped style featured in almost every look, featuring two distinct pockets and a gilded clip suitable for hanging your leather gloves when you grow tired of wearing them. This definitely was one of the best line-ups we’ve seen this Milan Fashion Week.

Comfort Zone. Tom Ford SS24

September 24, 2023September 24, 2023 | Design & Culture by Ed

Peter Hawkings‘ debut as Tom Ford‘s creative director felt like yet another re-edition of Tom’s all-time classics. We had all the Tom Ford signifiers on the Milan runway. Velvet blazers and sculptural belts from the Gucci years (quite ironically, Sabato De Sarno’s Gucci debut happened on the same day, leaving a similar impression of bleak plainness). Silk fringed dresses from the Yves Saint Laurent days. Meanwhile, slinky, floor-sweeping knitted maxi dresses and croc-embossed leather pencil-skirts with hot slits were Ford’s mainstay offer for seasons at his namesake brand. It’s understandable that Hawkings, who worked with Tom for decades as his right hand, wanted to keep all the house-codes and make a sort of tribute to the master of sexually-charged fashion. However, the spring-summer 2024 collection looked more like an in-store version of the runway deal. This brand has its unique language and vocabulary that can become a base for a truly creative venture. Hopefully, Hawkings will take a step away from his comfort zone.

Radical Reduction. Gucci SS24

September 23, 2023September 24, 2023 | Design & Culture by Ed

Sabato De Sarno‘s highly-anticipated debut at Gucci promised a lot, but in the end, felt like a plainly flavored meal. Proof: today in the morning, when I thought of the collection, I literally couldn’t remind myself of even one distinct look from the spring-summer 2024 line-up. It was just that… neutral. Yes, Gucci needed a restart: Alessandro Michele’s brought a lot of great things to the brand, but his last seasons were just too suffocating and tired. Still, in the end De Sarno’s radical reduction read more like a mediocre collection with touches of Prada, Old Céline, Valentino (the designer worked there before Gucci), Bottega Veneta and even Courrèges, than a clear new vision of the Italian brand. The designer wanted to create a random sequence of looks that would feel like outfits of people on Getty Images. But it was hard to spot the spontaneity of the paparazzi-caught celebs of the 2000s that De Sarno had in mind. The rumors were rumoring throughout months before the show that De Sarno would lean into the Tom Ford archives and turn out a super-sophisticated, sexy retort. Even the Daria Werbowy image suggested that. But that didn’t happen on yesterda’s runway. The collection wasn’t even Frida Gianini-coded: her Gucci had substance. Except for hoodies and denim pants, the new Gucci has in offer oddly-fitting pinafore dresses in sugary shades of pale green and peach – some trimmed with ostrich feathers, others covered in glittering Swarovski crystals – layered under boxy cropped jackets, while semi-see-through polo tops were tucked into high-waisted flares. The lingerie-influenced section was all about vinyl slips in black and scarlet trimmed with lace and dipping dangerously low on the back. Outerwear came trimmed with long tassels that oscillated as the models stormed through the space, while chunky platforms came high and sturdy, Jackie bags in bright sweetie-wrapper colors, and stilettos encrusted with layers of crystal. It wasn’t bad, it wasn’t great. But in today’s fashion, it’s hard to go by, doing very-whatever stuff.