Milan Men’s Fashion Week was held from January 14-18, a month before the Milan Fashion Week to be held later this month. Couture mainstay Giorgio Armani even cancelled his show in view of the rising Covid-19 cases. Many fashion brands opted to switch to digital presentations. However, the show went on with designers like Silvia Venturini Fendi, Dhruv Kapoor and Dolce and Gabbana. The show had throwback looks to the ‘20s, a nod to the outdoors with technical gear such as puffer jackets and camouflage pants on one side, and quirky suits, maximalist ensembles on the other, mirroring current fashion trends for men.
Dhruv Kapoor’s ‘Soul Tech’ Fall Winter ’22-23 collection looked at pops of colour amongst quirky prints. Showing at Milan Fashion Week for the seventh time, the designer applied cross-stitch floral embroidery on zero waste denim, black blazers, compiled all-logo ensembles of gloved turtlenecks, sweatpants and padded scarves.
Dean and Dan Caten of DSQUARED2 presented a mixed bag of layers on their runway. Long puffer jackets in primary colours, plaid shirts, argyle sweaters, camo pants nod towards the great outdoors. It was the Catens’ first show post-pandemic, and the duo also focused on accessories like fanny packs, backpacks, caps, and scarves.
The recently engaged Machine Gun Kelly and Megan Fox arrived at the Dolce & Gabbana fashion show, where the former took to the ramp. The designers described the show as “… a tribute to two universes that coexist – music and the metaverse.” Oversized gold D&G embossed suits, red sequinned blazers, pink-on-pink ensembles, large eco-fur sweeping overcoats, the collection was over-the-top in every way that one could conceive of.
Suits for millennials
Photo Courtesy: ZegnaPhoto Courtesy: Zegna
Zegna’s live runway show was replaced by a 15-minute fashion film of models dressed in white, black, brown, and grey against a snowy road in the Zegna family’s Oasi natural reserve in Piedmont, France. Alessandro Sartori, artistic director of the Italian brand, then followed up with a technical presentation of the new looks on live models. Zegna is focusing on reinvention, dropping the first name Ermenegildo from its official name and consolidating its three lines, alongside its recent public listing on the New York Stock Exchange and the launch of a new logo. Their Winter 2022 ‘A Path Worth Taking’ line focuses on modifying the suit to attract the youth. Deformalized jackets, layered tunic coats, oversized pockets, loose-fitting pleated trousers mark the new collection.
Star-studded
Photo Courtesy: PradaPhoto Courtesy: Prada
Jurassic Park star Jeff Goldblum closed Prada’s Milan Fashion Week show with a purposefully non-linear gait that filled the space with much-needed levity. Ten Hollywood stars, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Asa Butterfield, Jeff Goldblum, Damson Idris, Kyle MacLachlan, Tom Mercier, Jaden Michael, Louis Partridge, Ashton Sanders and Filippo Scotti also took to the ramp for Prada’s show. Named ‘Body of Work,’ the body was given emphasis, through precise tailoring and accentuation of the shoulders and waist. Sartorial construction methods are applied to knitwear, bomber jackets and parkas. The men’s show by Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons looks at theatre and cinema as mirrors of reality.
Bibliophiles in the making
Photo Courtesy: EtroPhoto Courtesy: Etro
A runway decorated in Etro’s signature paisley print gives way to models strutting down the ramp in graphic pullovers, jumpers and turtlenecks. In a nod to the location of the show, Bocconi University, models carried a book in hand. Paisley bathrobes made an appearance, as did graphic fleece sweaters, puffer jackets, amongst shades of red, forest green, plum, mustard, bright blue and grey.
Throwback to the ’20s
Photo Courtesy: FendiPhoto Courtesy: Fendi
Slinky fabrics, houndstooth and checks shaped Fendi’s Fall / Winter 2022-23 collection. Upside down Fs in metallic grey formed the catwalk for a line of old-world sartorial elegance. A touch of extravagance in the guise of large fur flower brooches adorned the lapels of the models.
