Demna Gvasalia is one of the only creative directors who manages to find an enviable balance between staying on trend and being political at the same time. The FW20 show presented in Paris last weekend was a show to remember , one that spoke directly to the inescapable doomsday that will brought by global warming, yet offering subtle glimmers of hope throughout the way.
The show’s set played a major role in the narrative — a flooded platform with water that bordered so wide that it submerged the first front rows seatings which was a subtle hint to the the primary responsibilities that lie with the decision makers of the industry. The ceilings of the room were screens programmed to produce eerie graphics birds fleeing and dark lighting which felt like a scene from a horror film.
It was as if he imagined the day of reckoning where humanity would be confronted with all its wrongdoings against Mother Earth, the day where Mother Earth herself wouldn’t wreak havoc upon the race with a menacing chaos. A mass of confusion so dire that it would wipe out whatever boundaries or structures we previously held which of course includes dress codes. Gvasalia dressed his subjects by fusing and recontextualizing dress codes associated with traditional values and desires. The religious was fused with the every day by way of clerical robes interpreted into casual wear ; bodybuilder fitted outfits made oversized for an one size fits all aesthetic and night gown prints made into powerful evening-wear. Sports, religion, obsession and seduction are a stripped of their functions and symbolisms and melted into one. It was a political statement aimed at climate change but also one that fired shots in the direction of religion and the traditional symbolism of the sacred versus the seductive.
“I had a lot of clerical wear in my research. I come from a country where the Orthodox religion has been so predominant. I went to church to confess every Saturday. Back then, I remember looking at all these young priests and monks, wearing these long robes and thinking, ‘How beautiful.’ You see them around Europe with their beards, hair knotted back and backpacks. I don’t know, I find it quite hot—but that’s my fetish,” the designer explained.
“How comes it is acceptable for clerics to wear that, but if I put on a long jacket and a skirt I will be looked at? I can’t, even in 2020! Religious dress codes are all about hiding the body, about being ashamed—body and sex is the taboo. Whereas when you look into it, some of these people are the nastiest perverts.”
Gvasalia created a collection that spoke to climate change, traditional dress codes and perversions of the church all while making reference to the house’s archives and staying in line with the current day trend. Such level of aptitude and interest in social change showcased, only makes one more intrigued for the house’s re-opening of their couture division later this year.
For the past few seasons Alexander McQueen Creative Director Sarah Burton has been resorting to the quietude of poetry as sparks of inspiration for her latest collection. A strategy that has been working quite well in finding the beauty in little things to execute and amplify on a larger scale. The beauty in nature or culture or in this case heritage. Burton’s FW20 references stemmed from a trip to Wales where she grew fond of several aspects of the country’s heritage.
“The collection is a love letter to women and to families, colleagues and friends. We went to Wales and were inspired by the warmth of its artistic and poetic heritage, by its folklore and the soul of its craft, “ she commented.
She drew direct inspiration from the Wrexham Tailor’s Quilt was an artefact and one of the most well known patchworks that was crafted over a ten year from 1842 using recycled scraps he had used to craft the uniforms he made during the day. The quilt known for its detailed visuals which stood as a representation of something greater, braver and aspirational knowing that it was pieced together by scraps. The literal and symbolic sentiment of this resonated with the designer.
“The woman is courageous, grounded, bold: heroic. There is a sense of protection in the clothes, of safety and comfort, evoked through quilting and blankets. The hearts are a symbol of togetherness, of being there for others.”
The collection was a collage of sharp seamed graphic tailoring that incorporated upcycled wool flannels woven in British mills from previous McQueen seasons and set in dramatic geometric blocks, which was also very much in line with the brand’s recent initiative of a fabric donation scheme for future designers.
“The ethos at Alexander McQueen means that everything we use in researching and designing collections has always been archived and stored”, she notes. “We’ve never thrown anything away.” Mindful of providing access to students who need resources, the scheme activates an imaginative purpose for the remaindered luxury fabrics which have been routinely saved after the sampling and production cycles of women’s and men’s collections over the past decade,” Burton said of the initiative.
This collection was a further step to this project , pulling on fabrics from the brand’s archive to piece together an impressive collection which spoke to the concepts of warmth, family and heritage all while being sustainable while at it.
It is safe to that Creative Director Silvia Venturini Fendi has been hitting her stride within the past few seasons. For FW20-21, the designer explored what it means to be a FENDI woman , or rather FENDI women with a collection that spoke to the different interpretations of what it means to be feminine. It was a collection that was charged with power yet stroked with softness and delicacy. It was a play between between a total dominance and a graceful elegance that was brought out even through the fabrics used. A mixture of cashmere, leather, lace and even fur were the headliners.
“Tailoring and outerwear is built around nipped waists; flared officer’s coats, burnished perfectos and high-octane blazers are boned through the bodice with shoulders that plane to a flat point or drop into a Juliet sleeve. Voluptuous shapes unfurl into cozy loopback sweaters, a bonded leather accordion skirt and bibbed organdie blouses.”
Each silhouette was defined by its respective story. The FENDI Fall/Winter 2020-2021 Accessories Collection were also optly paired with this season’s boudoir themes, as padded lambskin ‘brace’ booties and satin ‘suspender’ pumps elicit vampish airs.
In three sizes, a new accordion-frame Peekaboo bag opened in a deep ‘smile’ to reveal interchangeable inside pockets in smooth leather and precious skins. It appeared also dipped in gold leather fringes or traced with appliqué lacework and beaded tassels. The iconic Baguette bag in handknit wool was joined in leather shopper bags and charms inspired by vintage FENDI packaging, returning from the last Men’s Collection.
This weekend Francesco Risso presented his FW20 collection for Marni as an abstract reinterpretation of the age old tale of Alice in Wonderland.
“Where are you, Alice?
I’m not here right now, and probably not there. I am down the rabbit hole, luxuriating in a time warp.
Are you coming back anytime soon?
I don’t know. I feel like I have been here for a while, but probably I just arrived. Who are you?
I am Venus, Alice. Venus of the Rags. Do you recall me? I come with no tags, usually in full drag.
What can I do for you?
Please make sure you make, do, ment, and that you never bend. Take scraps, bits and pieces, never to be shredded in pieces. Be a militant, always vigilant.
Is this your vow?
Aim for the rainbow. But tell me, Alice, what was it like to fall in the hole?
I felt micro, then went macro, as the natural sped up to supernatural.”
The collection saw remnants of fabric collaged to create each look. Coats and tabards were created and worn with mini and maxi skirts made from scraps of leather and the calico that dress toilet were made from. Velvet, fragments of metal and even scraps of cotton fabric that were woven togethers by hand in a factory in Venice on looms that were originally designer by Leonardo Da Vinca. It was all an exploration of patchwork , a collection of memories, of thoughts, and fabrics, pieced together to create one story.
It was one those stories that left you asking yourself a question , as Risso noted, “ Are we in a psychedelic world and we need to be more grounded, or are we in a caged world and we need to be freed by psychedelia?”
Either way the designer’s collection fell into neither the categories of grounded nor caged but in all senses was an exploration of psychedelia from the details of glitter doused make up and hair to the precision of weaving of all the separate scraps of fabrics in a way which seamlessly harmonized them as the voices on a choir.
Designer Miuccia Prada is no stranger to the movement of feminism. She has not only covered the topic in past runway shows, but her presence in itself as one of the leading female forces in fashion is symbolic for many.
For her FW20 womenswear show the designer tackled traditional standards of what it means to be intrinsically feminine as she challenges the notion of femininity equating to softness, fragility and sensuality and proposing that this tradition delicacy can and should be what defines strength. With this in mind, she dresses her woman with the idea of finding power and strength in such paradoxes. Vents, layered fringes and deconstructed pleats reveal skin, and underscore locomotion.
Movement is tied to the corporeal , to athleticism, hence to sportswear. All these forms of everyday glamour are challenged from practical to aesthetic. Cinched waists of nylon puffer coats create a classic feline shape paired with gum boots for contrasts. The collection is a reflection of the construct of femininity, and an ode to it’s many different shapes, forms , sizes and manifestations. Each pairing , each look acts as a protest against the idea that there is a singular definition to what it means to be feminine, or what it means to be a woman.
Margaret Howell’s FW20 collection was crafted around the idea of a simple elegance. The designer showcased the collection yesterday in South Bank where she stripped back from the glitz and glamour and brought out the essential parts of her maison with class and minimalism.
From box pleat skirts, to knee high socks, to a simple white t-shirt dress which opened the show. Each look was stripped back to it’s core to embrace the true values of the British fashion house. Our photographer Olivia Lifungula gave us a BTS view of what went on at the Margaret Howell FW20 show.
Many have said that Vivienne Westwood is an exemplar of one of the only rebels left in fashion, and her FW20 presentation this weekend proved just that. No words were minced. The designer crafted a collection directed towards justice, sustainability and Julian Assange.
“I want to work with Extinction Rebellion and have Julian Assange freed,” she commented at the presentation held at the Serpentine Gallery yesterday.
The clothing spoke for themselves, or rather they screamed and protested with statements aimed towards an ironic yet effective form of fashion activism. Luckily Twin was there first hand to document every bit of it with our photographer Olivia Lifungula who captured all the details of the apparel activism initiated by the designer.
The mind of Marni’s creative director Francesco Risso has proven to be both a maze as it is a museum especially in the case of metaphors. For his latest show, Act ll , presented during the past weekend in Milan, the designer presented a collection that was inspired by the idea of seeing his fashion as a form of pharmaceutical drug which he called Tachitropirinia, used to treat an imaginary tropical disease.
“It is recommended for use by all subjects who are hypertensive to tropicalism: bulb women, mangrove ladies, cocoon females, Liana amazons, jungle janes, palm elves,” reads the press release.
This was brought out through a series of brushstroke prints on garments that wrapped the body like cocoons in a variety of different colours and prints. Flared skirts with balloon smock tops , raw edged painted coats, net dresses , flip flops and all made from accumulations of old recycled fabrics. For the past few season Risso has managed to drill in the topic of sustainability not only with the physical collection, but with all aspects of his show as well. This season guests all sat on recycled cardboard stools and were surrounded by a tropical jungle of artificial trees created from recycled materials used during Risso’s last two shows.
Last week in Milan, Marni’s creative director Francesco Risso, who has in some ways become the enfant terrible of Milanese fashion invited guests to a show space that featured a net ceiling filled with plastic bottles for the presentation of his SS20 collection. The show’s set, although containing a strong message to environmental matters we face today was simply just a backdrop, or as the designer himself put it, “a reminder of the issues we’re facing with plastic hanging over our heads.”
The collection itself was a celebration as much as it was a rebellion. Risso imagined an unlikely marriage between Argentine revolutionist Ernesto Che Guevara and American novelist Truman Capote with himself as the wedding planner. This resulted in the harmony of two opposing worlds, carnival meets military. From hats made from staples, to old furs, plastics and debris by artist Shalva Nikvashvili, to slippers crafted from cardboard cut outs and plimsolls dipped in oil.
“A study in clashes, and the uneven harmony that ensues by mixing opposite worlds, jumbling it all together. The extreme graphic properness and formality of suits. The radical rebelliousness of field jackets and militaria, with a tropical slant.”
For the first time in a very long time, Italian fashion house Fendi stepped off site their routined Milanese show space and headed for the gardens of an 18th century villa in central Milan for their SS2020 show. A switch that had been prompted by creative director Silvia Venturini Fendi’s need for a break from the virtually infested world we live in as she takes a minute to appreciate the fruits of Mother Nature . This collection was a version of the Fendi man that goes fishing on weekends and gardens in his spare time. Sartorial workwear pieces were presented with a casual elegance that allow their wearers a sort of relaxed eased approach towards life.
From khaki cotton overalls, to striped beach slips, to fishmerman style vests and cargo pants. Throughout the collection, the house also revealed their collaboration with renown “Call Me By Your Name” director Luca Guadagnino who drafted a few botanical prints for the collection. These were brought out through digital prints and cut out knit wear. The colour palette was one that blended with the habitat ranging from beiges, to greens , browns and whites. In regards to accessories, the house debuted a Pequin printed Fendi watering can, garden baskets, big totes, pouch bags as well as versions of the Fendi baguette and peekaboo bags. This collection was a breath of fresh air for the house, one that in some ways allows for a sort of reset, and more than anything conjures the desire for a vacation.
On the occasion of their fifth anniversary, Italian minimalist brand SUNNEI adopted an urban space in the Rubattino area of eastern Milan, which they transformed into what they now dub as Bianco Sunnei. The space, an entirely normal concrete area that sat underneath a giant bridge in Milano’s Parco dell’Acqua and has been regenerated as a visual oasis coated in white paint. A type of maximal minimalism that didn’t call for much to make a statement than a well thought out concept. This sort of effortless assertive simplicity was strung throughout the brand’s SS2020 collection which had their freshly created space as it’s backdrop.
The collection was aimed towards a specific colour palette which not only complemented the space, but embraced some of the house’s iconic runway history , from plain white, to the khaki browns, somber citruses, lime greens to sky blues and midnight blacks. Each transition gliding into another as if it were some sort of poetry. But not just any kind of poem, no, this was a haiku — three lines, seventeen syllables, 17 words. Very simple but meticulously planned as to evoke all the right feelings. Boxy volumes were in abundance with cargo pants, monochromatic suits, denim jackets and coats, knit dresses that explore a few moments of layering. Fabrics move like liquid as the brand uses this moment to highlight their collaboration with Albiate 1830 — a branch of Italian eco-friendly fabric company Albini. This is seen through 3D woven nylon yarns, fresh leathers, and a deckchair-striped cotton poplin. Last season the designer duo presented a collection as a stance resistant against the wave of streetwear by referencing the 2000s. This season they affirmed that notion of in some ways being anti-fashion- Not like Rick Owens anti-fashion, and although similar not even Marni’s anti-fashion. Just simply riding , moving , sketching to the beats of their own rhythms, which happens to be in the opposite direction of everyone else. Either way this has become the duo’s strong suit.
Last week three young designers under the Fashion East Initiative presented their SS2020 collections. A small tribe of Londoners and British fashion school alumni who each spoke with very different voices.
Saul Nash SS2020Saul Nash SS2020Saul Nash SS2020
The newest designer to the bunch was British dancer and choreographer Saul Nash who opened the showcase and his section of the evening with a group of models standing on the runway. Followed by a dance performance upon the guests being seated. This performance helped to show off Nash’s construction abilities in creating functional pieces with technical fabrics, curved zippers and mesh. From steel grey nylon pants, to light blue tracksuits. Each piece was made with an awareness of comfort and sensitivity towards movement.
Irish designer Robyn Lynch presented a solid coloured men’s collection inspired by the sport uniforms worn throughout Irish communities in earlier decades. This was brought out through a selection of cable knit sweaters, terry cloth shorts, t-shirts and cropped sweatpants all rendered in a palette of mint greens, lilac and cornflower blues.
Mowalola SS2020Mowalola SS2020Mowalola SS2020
Nigerian designer Mowalola Ogunlesi showcased her second collection with Fashion East that was inspired by her experiencing the woes of romantic love for the first time, “I’ve just fallen in love for the first time and I feel as if no one talks about the horrific side, the dangers of love, losing control of your emotions and feeling like your crazy. It’s like a horror movie. So this is as if I’m in a black Woodstock Festival and someone has been murdered,” she explained. And henceforth this included looks with gunshot wounds placed against large lip prints, religious symbols in colourful halter necked suits, skin tight pants, revealing bodices, jumpsuits, and coats made from leather, cotton and cowhide fabrics.
Weekend past Italian streetwear label GCDS presented their Fall Winter 2019 collection in their signature show space in Milan. This season , creative director Giuliano Calza’s inspiration for the collection was a play on the notion of how society’s boundaries and expectations for today’s youth represents a toxin of creativity and imagination. Though quite simple inspiration, the designer wrapped his mind around a rather complicated show concept. The first half of the 49 look collection revealed a cast of models bouncing down the runway in 90’s inspired looks which included cheetah and zebra prints, bouncy pink hair, logo printed coats and lots of vibrant colours. It also revealed the house’s collaboration with pasta company Barilla and toy company Polly Pocket which carried their logos across sweaters. The second half of the collection was when the magic apparently vanished from the youth as a result of having to succumb to social norms and standards. This revealed a cast of models dressed in veils, catsuits, mini dresses, work suits in a palette of black, purple, blue and other dark shades. This was a simple yet interesting statement made with a simple change of lighting and music. Giuliano Calza often delivers a show which gives you all the fun, but at the same time never borderlines on costume. He creates these concepts for his consumers which not only makes them want to purchase pieces but also makes them want to join in the story. He creates a narrative which is very much street, and although some may argue at times he may border on cultural appropriation , has not yet crossed the line, especially as a result of his selection of such a diverse casting. This makes you wonder, if by doing so, he’s in some ways subconsciously aiming to challenge the walls down around the concept of appropriation itself.
This weekend Italian fashion house Marni’s Fall Winter womenswear show took place in the same location as the menswear show only a few weeks ago. Guests were welcomed into the space of dim multi-coloured lighting and speakers as they eagerly waited for the show titled “NEUROEROTIK” to commence. As the name suggests, creative director Francesco Risso envisioned the show to be a fantaerotic escape game. A game based on the themes of sexuality, sensuality and mind play. It was about exploring the possibilities of re-directing the mind to think of alternative body parts and even garments as erogenous zones. As the electric soundtrack from the movie The Shining was cued, each piece from the collection walked with a double meaning, gold and silvers chains wrapped around the neck and body, silk pleated scarves which hung from the neck and almost dropped to the floor, skirts with two waistlines, mens blazers and jackets cut in half, and sleeves were slashed. It was a quirky humour sort which made one marvel at the possibilities of sexuality, the power of the mind and the concept of fashion design as a means of neurotic exploration. Each piece told a story and gave a stimulus to a different conceptualization of what we know as reality with a primary palette of red, black, orange, white and hints of rhinestones. This woman Risso created around the themes of sexual liberation and experimentation fruited a line of wardrobe components that is in many ways reflective of the feminist zeitgeist we are currently living in.
Just yesterday, Roman fashion house Fendi invited guests to their Milan location to view the final collection designed by the late Karl Lagerfeld. There was something to be said about the atmosphere upon location, the screams of the fur protesters on the outside in comparison to the somber mood on the inside, it was an aspect that was very Karl Lagerfeld. How regardless of protests, laws or whatever was happening, the iconic designer had a code which he lived by and carried to his grave, which is something to be respected.
Of course, the Fendi Fall Winter 2019 collection was an ode to Karl and his half a century with the house. As an apt sound track of Lou Reed & John Cale’s Small Town played in the background, it set the mood for what was to come, a compilation of Lagerfeld’s signature designs throughout time. Starting from the beginning with his classic silhouettes, the first look made it’s debut as a double breasted suit dress with a poignant white bow around the neck. Throughout the collection , the looks featured a various number of different styles and tailoring, the iconic Fendi logo monogram , designed by Karl himself in his ‘Karliagraphy’ font appeared on coats and cabochon buttons there were also floating bow belts, pleated trouser, asymmetric lapels, tulle bodysuits , pointed collars and laser cut leather outwear. Neutral tones of ivory tulle, cognac and beige contrasted shades of sea green, yellow, tangerine and azure. Each piece holding the common thread of the late designer’s expertise. The iconic Fendi Baguette was also transformed into versions of embossed pillow patent, vegetal leather and a multi-strap utility harness. The entire collection was a celebration of Mr. Lagerfeld as a designer whose inception created a whole new era of designers and whose vision helped to shape the Italian house into the brand that it is today. “The bond between Karl Lagerfeld and Fendi is fashion’s longest love story, one that will continue to touch our lives for years to come. When we called just a few days before the show, his only thoughts were richness and beauty of the collection,” to quote Silvia Venturini.
Yesterday Italian fashion house Prada welcomed guests to their show space in Milan, for the viewing of their Fall Winter 2019 Women’s collection. Being the same set to that of the menswear show last month , this show was a continuation of the Frankenstein storyline established in the previous show, from a slightly different perspective. Last season designer Miuccia Prada’s focus was on the outcasts of society, she crafted a collection mainly inspired by the social Frankensteins of society, which was a dark but interesting stimulus. However this season, she decided to shed light on the more affectionate side of such a love story , being love stories like Frankenstein and his Bride. The collection titled “The Anatomy of Romance,” was an exploration of the gloom of love and romance and their duality. It spoke to that turbulent pull one has towards love even when you know it will end in turmoil. As a violin instrumental of bad romance plays in the background, a model struts the runway in a full black gown with an embroidered yellow rose to the side. This was the mood, this was a woman who was strong, feminine, who falls in love and gets her heart broken every time, yet always gets back up to try again. The collection also featured a military utilitarian nod: army green skirts, massive patch pockets, black trouser suits, along with fun features such as lace veils and skirts, a Frankenstein + Bride printed dress, mohair fur ear and head muffs and also mohair fur backpacks. As much as this collection focused on the dark side of things, it also focused on love’s duality and it’s potential to bloom, with flashes of flower prints and embroideries throughout the story. Last season Ms.Prada had lots of fun with a quirky, interesting collection, however this season, the pieces were more practical and serious and also very Prada.
In past seasons, Austrian designer Arthur Arbesser often referenced art from the Viennese Secession for inspiration behind his collections. However, the only valid explanation for the designer’s dexterity in design and architecture intricately executed in his last collection is for him to hold himself to the same standards as one of these artisans.
For Fall Winter 2019, the designer welcomed guests to an indoor sound-reflective rock climbing site on the outskirts of Milan . As the show began, the space was first filled with an arrangement of elegant orchestral music complemented by the clank of approaching rubber boots. Calf high rubber boots fashioned in black, white and blue carefully paired with a selection of colours from Arthur’s palette. The collection took inspiration from the architectural context of his Milan studio which was designed by Luigi Caccia Dominoni in the late forties with a bourgeois classic Milanese aesthetic. Each look was skilfully paired with the most unexpected complementary colours: pomegranate and lychee shade pants, yellow and olive, checkered shirts and skirts, feather textured blouses, architectural jewellery. This collection felt very personal to the designer, as if the woman he was dressing would be a woman he would not only be dressing, but be crafting, and grooming. She felt free, artistic and at the same time cryptic, almost like the a female Picasso who took you on a very personal journey throughout her abstract process, but instead of paint, her chosen medium is fabric.
Last weekend passed this year’s first Fashion East showcase which featured a list of three intriguing London based emerging designers, in showcase of their Fall Winter 2019 Collections. The non-profit initiative, set up by Lulu Kennedy and Old Truman Brewery to support and nurture emerging British talent celebrates its 18th year of triumph after housing designers such as JW Anderson, Kim Jones and Gareth Pugh; just to name a few.
Central Saint Martins graduate Gareth Wrighton was one of the three talents to showcase. Wrighton presented a 22 look collection in collaboration with stylist Ib Kamara titled “Smooth Criminal.” The collection was inspired by a four month residency the designer previously took in Johannesburg with Kamara and South African photographer Kristin Lee Moolman. It cohesively spoke to the stories of political coups, warring dynasties and feuding families caught in a violent power struggle. The looks included flaming hair, bullet accessorised mini dresses and sweaters with burning forests. The collection in itself was nothing short of a political statement.
Gareth Wrighton AW19 | Image via Chris YatesGareth Wrighton AW19 | Image via Chris Yates
In 2017 Designer Charlotte Knowles and partner Alexandre Arsenault launched their South London label Charlotte Knowles London after also completing their masters at Central Saint Martins. Designing for a feminine and strong woman, in the AW19 collection, Knowles explores femininity and ready to wear in a way which disrupts traditional boundaries. Boundaries between the vulnerable and the combative, the human and the natural, the intimate and the public and the strange and familiar. The collection featured wool and technically crafted fabrics, made in soft pastel colours from form fitting, to minimal to fluid. This was the designers’ final showcase with the support of the Fashion East Initiative .
Charlotte Knowles AW19 | Image via Chris YatesCharlotte Knowles AW19 | Image via Chris YatesCharlotte Knowles AW19 | Image via Chris Yates
The final collection was that of Chinese CSM trained designer Yuhan Wang whose collection was inspired by traditional Chinese concepts of femininity and their connections to western culture. She explored the lines between beauty and strangeness , softness, delicacy and sensibility. In her second season showcasing for the Fashion East initiative, Wang’s pieces were made in silk satins, lace, velvet and tulle in ripple technique to flounce around the female form. She presented sheath and tea dresses in a 3 Dimensional way where her ruches and other artistically danced around the body. “ I think of it as the push and pull we experience as women. The constant dialogue between our inner and outer worlds,” says wang. With soft colours of blue, lilac and primrose yellow, the designer pieced together a cohesive collection which told an impactful and interesting story.
Yuhan Wang AW19 | Image via Chris YatesYuhan Wang AW19 | Image via Chris YatesYuhan Wang AW19 | Image via Chris Yates
Last weekend guests were invited to the Milanese headquarters of Italian fashion house Fendi for the presentation of their Fall Winter 2019 menswear collection.
For Spring Summer we were presented with a collection where Venturini drew inspiration from one of the main men in her life, her son-in-law Nico Vascellari, a performance and visual artist who according to her “transforms himself on the stage,” revealing several facets fo himself including a dark side. From this came a collection of light and dark which featured shorts, fanny packs, buckets hats and other streetwear like pieces. However for this season, the creative director chose to muse upon one of the more, or if you dare say, the most tailored male figure in her life. Karl Lagerfeld was the guest artist in this season’s collection to which he contributed to physically and creatively.
“I have never seen him wearing sportswear; he is always wearing tailoring in a contemporary way, ” stated Venturini Fendi, which was exactly what represented the theme carried throughout the collection, — “tailoring done in a contemporary way.”
Upon entry, guests were treated to the scenery of a black and gold replica of Karl Lagerfeld’s personal Parisian library. Then came the models who were clad in classic tailored pieces which made them seem like wealthy fashionable modern day librarians. Tuxedos and shirts were made in organza and accessorised with gold chains, there were puffer parkers and jumpers made in two different colours, high collared shirts and asymmetrical double-breasted suits all made with a palette of black, beige, brown, accents of red, blue and a calligraphic version of the FF logo.
Most looks were accompanied by several forms of baggage which included Fendi logo-ed briefcases, trunks and newly introduced male versions of the brand’s iconic Peekaboo bag and Baguette. The man created throughout this collection was a tailored contrast to the street-like Fendi man previously seen, but he was in fact a character who wore timeless well-made pieces flexible enough to pull out the closet during any season of the year. Visit Fendi for more.
Last men’s season Italian designer Massimo Giorgetti welcomed his audience to volleyball courtside for the viewing of a collection inspired by the beachy sport. However for FW19 , Giorgetti had a rather more dangerous impulse for the inspiration behind the latest collection. The art of motor racing culture and the adrenaline from the velocity behind it was his sole focus this season. “MSGM is evolving. Speed has always been at our heart, the fast passion of life. What do we do as we grow? We go faster,” to quote the man himself.
The collection was aptly titled TURBO and featured graphic pieces inspired by the thrilling qualities of the world of motor racing. It included knitted jumpers and t-shirt with the slogans “more speed” and “run away”, bright coloured parkas and trucker jackets, wide cut denim cargo pants inspired by pit crew uniforms, motorsport newspaper stories printed on coats and of course the customary reference to Milan with an embroidered blouse of the Duomo’s skyline. The collection was a rather tailored offering to the table of streetwear as was included a selection of double breasted blazers and wool coats complimented by both sneakers and formal footwear. See more at MSGM.
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