(by Elisa Cecchi).
'Italia is love' according to
Dolce & Gabbana, whose spring-summer 2016 collection in Milan
was all about showing off their Italian tradition and DNA - with
a selfie.
The duo's fashion show on Sunday was a celebration of the
world of social media.
Models were taking selfies with the show's viewers just as
the public was snapping off for the benefit of their Instagram
followers.
Such social media extravaganza had an all-Italian setup
around the catwalk made for Insta-perfection, including a
characteristic fruit stall and a soundtrack to match with
'That's Amore' blaring during the show's grand finale.
Yet the photogenic virtual Italian tour was just a story
line to go straight to the heart of what Dolce & Gabbana is
about - opulence and femininity.
The richness was highlighted by plenty of lace, embroidery
and embellishment, while 1950s silhouettes, tunics and
hour-glass shapes brought femininity back on the radar for
spring-summer.
''There isn't a trend, we just did everything we like,'' the
designer duo said of the collection, highlighting that the
clothes were simple but not minimalistic.
Out of their show's 90 colourful outfits, many had
hand-made embroideries and applications.
There was a yellow satin mini-dress with 'Italia is Love'
embroidered on it, a sexy brasserie in black lace, a Chantilly
lace gown with Portofino written in crystals while another gown
had a motif with the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
And there were also pom-poms on shorts and skirts that
evoked decorations on Sicilian carts, Michelangelo's David on a
long skirt and Rome's Colosseum on a top.
In the show's finale, each model paraded a dress dedicated
to some of Italy's most beautiful cities - Capri, Pisa,
Portofino and Verona - in a highly photogenic tribute to the
Belpaese.
Meanwhile, elsewhere at the Milan shows, a few recurring
themes were worth noting.
Chunky clogs, whose popularity has been on the rise ever
since the revival of the 1970s, featured at Bottega Veneta,
where designer Tomas Maier gave a new sporty edge to his usual
polished breed of women.
Hiking, sailing and nature in general served as inspiration
for a collection that embraced leopard prints, knitted stripes
and bold suits in all-over motifs, as well as military notes,
also seen at Versace.
Chunky clogs stepped on the Versace runway, along with
platforms, as part of a sharp collection oozing womanly
confidence, prominently featuring utility jackets and little
belted dresses in animal prints and camouflage.
Harnesses and other types of straps were also a theme, as
seen at Rodolfo Paglialunga's Jil Sander and at the MSGM label
of Massimo Giorgetti, who also debuted his first collection for
Emilio Pucci on the first day of the Milan shows.
Meanwhile another debuting creative director, Peter Dundas
at Roberto Cavalli, had a 1980s flashback with jeans, tie-dye
and stone-washed fabrics.
Dundas mastered a smooth transition into a brand with a
well-defined following.
He carried with him the glamour factor he had formerly
brought to Emilio Pucci with a new accent on denim - tie-dyed
and distressed fabrics on biker jackets and vests - and an
unprecedented eye on sportswear that saw the introduction of
sweatshirts styled with ball skirts, alongside the classic
Cavalli fare of unapologetically sexy dresses.
It was a ''free mix of garments'', as defined by the show
notes, that went straight back to the core of the house's roots.
And another voyage straight to the core of a brand led
Marni's Consuelo Castiglioni to produce a sporty version of her
aesthetic in a fresh palette of primary colors.
White, yellow, green, blue and black - with pink and red
touches - gave a fresh sparkle to a collection with plenty of
wide-leg trousers, pinafore dresses and tunics to be mixed in a
game of dress up where the ambiguity lies on whether you are
looking at one garment or at separates.
And such a Marni signature look was completed with two
other house staples - sculpted graphics and must accessories
complementing the clothes, which included for next spring golden
leaf earrings and angular bangles and an artsy reinterpretation
of the brown paper bag.
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