MILAN, ITALY — Traditional, technical and tactile materials have been all over the runways this season, which ought to have put designers at a distinct advantage. In Milan, luxury houses have a history of unconventional fabrications, and they emerged as key strong focuses of this season’s collections.
At Giorgio Armani, the show notes promoted a narrative about the house’s tradition and quest for innovation colliding with simple, fuss-free elegance, but really this was a show better served for its surface appeal than its subtext, for the real story here was Armani’s experimentation with different scales of tailored cotton, and the house’s playful, sheer takes on glimmers found across metallic and graphic geometries. That made for some excellent individual pieces—to wit, motifs and surfaces were accentuated by strong shapes and sumptuous textiles.
But it was the sartorial and textural experimentation that truly won the race here. Pouches and clutches further-emphasise silhouettes, while loafers, high sandals and flat neoprene boots accompany the transition into evening, The Armani house continues to evolve, remaining faithful to the idea that fashion changes, while style endures.
Bottega Veneta’s Louise Trotter fell back on her specialty for Spring/ Summer 2027, marking her third collection at the house: sculptural construction. The two main themes on display were amplified billowing proportions that blended crisp and breezy offerings in equal measure.
This season’s va-va-voom aftermath passed on some of the volumes to oversized raffia bags with intrecciato motifs that looked just like swinging pendulums, some decked by fringes. Offerings were streamlined and silhouettes were rendered with the lightest leather, among others, following the collection’s theme that saw Trotter exploring the season’s cyclicality.
The star-studded front row included Jacob Elordi, Tyler, The Creator and Julianne Moore, while supermodel Kendall Jenner—wrapped around in a finely-sculpted, longline black gown—closed the show. In their complexity and wearability, these offerings speak for strong women and will undoubtedly break up the parade of awards season monotony.
by Chidozie Obasi