Milan Fashion Week A/W 2016/17 Collection Review: Who Were Milano's Women This Season?
By: Non Kuramoto
Milan Fashion Week is probably my favorite of all of the fashion weeks. Everything from the pieces that grace the runway to street style, Milan has a touch of quirk and unique flavor that makes them different from New York, London and Paris. The designers who present at Milan embrace the art of fashion; garments seen at Milan Autumn/Winter 2016/2017 did not disappoint—featuring whimsical designs, delicately crafted elements and an overarching interest in telling stories. I picked three collections from this week that bid good-bye to norm-core, and pursued truly artistic visions.
Gucci
Alessandro Michele has done it again. Only a year into his appointment as the Creative Director of Gucci, Michele has given the brand a new, and very influential, identity. A nerdy-femme aesthetic, which may as well have walked straight out of a Wes Anderson movie, was infused with a touch of ferocity this season. Her silhouettes were more structured and the prints spoke "bold," rather than "delicate." The punchy colors would give any woman in Michele’s garments the confidence and power to command a room. Michele’s collaboration with graffiti artist Trouble Andrew (a.k.a. GucciGhost) was also notable. Allowing an artist who appropriates Gucci’s signature in his pieces was a graceful combination of tradition and modernity. The black leather embossed bags reading, “Real Gucci,” was a tongue-in-cheek way for him to comment on the culture of counterfeit luxury items.
Moschino
If teenagers thought they were edgy using “lit” to describe something cool or fashionable, Jeremy Scott took it to a new level. With hashtag #itslit, Scott set Milan on fire with his new collection. A huge change from last season’s cheery construction workers, the models scowled down the runway clad in boldly colored satin, chains, leather and cigarette patterns. The Moschino woman was the high-end dominatrix; she knows her power, commands attention and has the ability to drive men mad. The second half of the show is when we found out exactly what was “lit.” Lit were the dresses, scorched and left with ragged hems. Lit was the dress with smoke spewing from the model’s trail. Lit was the dress that was also a chandelier. Although the wearability of this collection is questionable, a statement on the current state of fashion was definitely made, as well as posed: With fashion tradition being shaken up, is it time to burn everything down? And will fashion rise from the ashes like a phoenix?
Dolce & Gabbana
Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana has just won everyone’s heart (if they hadn’t already), as everybody’s dream fairy godfathers. This season’s theme was princesses and fairytales, and they were not going for subtlety. Cinderella’s iconic blue dressed floated down the runway, complete with plexiglass slippers that the Tremaine sisters would have died for—more reasons than just the prince’s hand. Her mice friends danced around as embroidery, and her pumpkin carriage made an appearance as a bag. A dress embroidered with an evil step-mother looking into a mirror was followed by a dress covered in apples—Snow White, embroideries of a tall tower—Rapunzel—and a sweater on which a princess is kissing a frog—Frog Prince. Sprinkling references of so many princesses in their iconic A-line shift dresses and other impeccably constructed garments, Dolce & Gabbana relentlessly brought our childhood dreams to life. They didn’t forget the princes either! Beautiful Napoleonic jackets covered in charms and encrusted with pearls and gems, would make even Prince Charming check himself out when he gets dressed.
Sources: Vogue Runway
