Traversing Unconventionality and Classicism at Milan Fashion Week

Italy has been going through a phase of obscurantism and introversion alongside with the rest of the world. These constant shifts inside society’s core are creating a feeling of uncertainty for the market across the globe. In fashion, there is a constant need for growth, which is being accomplished only by the exponential increase in profit. Fashion needs to play it safe in order to attract a wider range of customers, and Italian fashion, to be more specific, has to promote its biggest trademark so far. The ‘’Made in Italy’’ sign on its products. In difficult times, there isn't much space; that’s why this time creativity was absent in general. Creativity isn’t something we have in large quantities; it has to be targeted and has to deliver a strong message. Instead of that, simplicity took over as a way to rewrite Italian fashion history in a season where normality looks like something that should be celebrated. As a society, Italy was always divided between progression and classicism, minimalism and maximalism, formality and casualness. For the latest Milan menswear fashion week, this fragmented aspect of culture is reflected on the runway more vividly than ever before.

The essence of going back and forth in time, combining past and future, tradition with the exaggeration of something new and unexpected, was clearly floating all over the Gucci catwalk. For his second collection for the Italian power house, Sabato de Sarno re-imagined his debut collection on men’s bodies. That thought gave us the Ancora 2 show, which bared exactly the same elements with the first one. From the same lights of the long and rectangular runway of the industrial Fonderia Carlo Macchi to the soundtrack made by Mark Ronson. But the similarities continued with the clothes as well. The creative director recreated several looks from his debut womenswear collection in order to fit men’s standards in an effort to break the gender or just to point out the fact that ‘’It’s just clothes for everyone’’. This time, leather jackets were getting paired with black tailored trousers and creeper loafers, and the deep cuts were embodied into sharp details on the suits. The Ancora Rosso color, which had already started to spread all over the world of fashion like a new pandemic, was there too as the new Gucci signature. If Sabato de Sarno knows something really well is how to make great tailoring, and that of course, was the first thing that he showcased in his menswear debut. Beside the soberness of the collection, there was a harmonious blend of skilled tailoring, voluminous designs, and a nod to the fashion sensibilities of the bygone era, signifying the return of the suit as the ultimate symbol of Italian conformity.

Tailoring was also present at Prada, taking over the whole collection. As a way to bring elegance back as only they know it, Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons took the tie -the symbol of conformity - into new heights. More specifically, they took formality into the nature, which broke the stiffness and structuredness of the suit by giving it a contemporary show space to bloom - literally and metaphorically. Miucia Prada was always a master at creating hybrids by taking elements of formal wear and sportswear. That was exactly what Raf Simons wanted to showcase in this collection, which was his most Pradaish so far. The two co-existing creative directors took multiple notes from the Prada archive and recreated them for the latest show (take a look at Prada’s Fall/Winter 2002 menswear show). For this show, everything was about the Prada twist. These nods of modernity into the landscape of classicism. That’s why the two designers took the businessman into the outdoors. The perfect connection between man and nature. This kind of unity was solidified with swimming caps in multiple colors, leather sandals and scuba trousers that were getting styles with strutted suits, heavy tailored coats and thin sole derbies, along with the iconic Prada nylon backpack.

The great outdoors was also on Silvia Venturini Fendi’s mind, who took the Fendi man to the countryside. For her latest collection, Fendi’s creative director of menswear and accessories wanted to give a new functionality to the menswear staples. That’s why she created timeless pieces across the spectrum of modernity. There were multiple nods to the images of British royals in their countryside houses. A male model opened the show wearing a leather workwear jacket with big pockets, paired with a khaki skirt and high leather boots, while checked coats with a distinguished Scottish allure followed. What is really worth noticing about this Fendi collection is how the tailoring was transformed to achieve the goal of the collection. Classic coats were sparkling on the runway due to a new weaving technic that the brand used, while the suits' trousers were cut into shorts for a contemporary twist. Going against the signs of the time, this collection gloriously blurs the gender signs, pointing out the importance of clothing and the feeling of liberation.

Having that in mind and as a pioneer who is into making the difference by being unconventional, Jonathan Anderson opted for a kind of deranged classicism this season. Inspired by the interiors in the “Eyes Wide Shut" movie, the designer perverted elements of decoration into clothing. Cushions and curtains were turned into shorts and cardigans, while prints of 92-year-old Stanley Kubrick’s wife, Christiane Kubrick, were put on knitwear and maxi dresses, both for men and women. Of course, the sex element wasn’t absent, but this time it was redirected in a way to sting society’s core regarding gender and preferences. That’s why men were walking down the runway dressed in sheer leggings and tights, wearing only their underwear, flawlessly creating a scene that was by far deviant from what we saw through the entire fashion week.

These bright moments of enlightenment were quickly covered up by a massive wave of properness given almost like a medicine to the audience and fashion enthusiasts through the image that the collections themselves were delivering. The suit took over Milan like a flood that reached out even to the most edgy and punky ones like Jordanluca and Pronounce.

Article by @sotiriskaberis

Images courtesy of RED-EYE Team

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