MILAN AUTUMN WINTER 2020

At the Milan Fashion Week, the tension was palpable due to the recent news of the expansion of the Coronavirus to Italy. One cannot help but wonder if the level of alarmism is meant to be heard or if it is just media paranoia. Despite this, the Milanese, who have always been praised for their effortless elegance - having a way with materials and layers of silhouettes, which is still timeless and chic - have found light at the end of the tunnel. The designers who have focused this season on their heritage and delved into the roots of their origins have found exciting ways to innovate.

Here is a selection of the most outstanding fashion shows and everything you need to know about this Milan Fashion Week AW20:

GIORGIO ARMANI

Giorgio Armani shows his collection behind closed doors by streaming it through all online channels and social networks due to the cases of coronavirus in Italy. Almost every look, from the fabrics to the embroidery, had a dazzlingly bright accent, delivering what was, all in all, a sophisticated collection with gorgeous daytime wear and powerful evening pieces. 

DOLCE & GABANNA

Dolce & Gabanna celebrates craftsmanship, as they did with their men's collection, something they have been promoting for some time. What makes Dolce & Gabbana an iconic brand is undoubtedly the link to their Sicilian and Italian style, interpreted in many different facets. Recently, their collections have become a catalogue of their best assets, but they lack a bit of a surprise factor. Despite this, the remarkable Italian brand creates a bridge between the past and the future, speaking to the new generations. The collection featured many redesigned clothes with a fresh approach.

ALBERTA FERRETTI

"Daywear. Tailoring. Feminine,” Ferretti's said. Her focus on feminine tailored daywear was difficult to miss. Evening was equally forceful, resplendent in the metallic, cold shine of silver.  Plenty of oversized, blown-up volumes and powerful ’80s silhouettes were fortified by robust use of leather dressing. The designer has taken a much more pragmatic and efficient route, in keeping with fashion’s zeitgeist.

PRADA

Breaking news: Raf Simons joins Prada as co-creative director.  Simons will work in collaboration with Miuccia Prada with the same creative input and decision-making responsibilities.  The first Prada collection designed by Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons will be the Spring/Summer 2021 women's clothing exhibition. Anxious to see what they will bring us, for the time being we are focusing on this collection in which glamour was an expression of strength and everyday’s things and objects were enhanced.

MSGM

MSGM continues to develop the second part of the terrifying collaboration with filmmaker Darío Argento. The horror film master's incredible taste for aesthetics and Giorgetti's skill with merchandise delivered a clever collection that looked fun and desirable. 

BOTTEGA VENETA 

For both men and women, the collection included rigorous tailoring with flashes of acid green and strawberry pink, between long fringed dresses for women that interrupted the strict aesthetic. There was also a touch of sportswear, which added another layer to the collection. 

MISSONI

Missoni played with geometries that told a story of female strength, empowerment and self-awareness, reinventing a new Missoni texture. A lot of lurex illuminated the parts of the night and everything became lighter. Angela Missoni's men's and women's collections were sophisticated and chic.

GABRIELE COLANGELO

Colangelo experiments with laser cutting on paper and translates this experiment into fabrics for his AW20 collection, creating an interaction between tradition and innovation. This interaction between tradition and technological improvements was what made the collection strong. A palette of cerulean, brown, straw yellow and mint green colors characterized the garments, giving a touch of what, in the end, was minimalism in its purest form.

ANNAKIKI

Annakiki was one of the few Chinese designers who managed to exhibit at Milan Fashion Week before the emergence of the Coronavirus. On this occasion, he presented "Infoxication": a thinly veiled complaint against the information overload that invades our brains on a daily basis. Perhaps a comment on the media paranoia of the moment? The designer brought to the catwalk some of her classic silhouettes and iconic cuts, revisiting them through psychedelic rainbow prints, asymmetrical designs and dramatic sleeves. 

"The Internet, television, artificial intelligence, the social media have been bombarding us with information, whether it's fake news or real news - our lives have become more intelligent but at the same time we are more lazy"

GCDS

At GCDS, "the starting point of this collection was initially the creation of a haute couture collection to prove to their enemies that they are also capable of it. This time, Giuliano Calza left the graphics at home, but still added a touch of brilliance to his collection by featuring Swarovski inlaid shirts, vests, garters, turtlenecks and more. Overall, it was a bold and fun collection, set to the funky Neapolitan tunes of Nu Guinea and the performance of South American singer Kali Uchis.

MARNI

This collection was an extreme celebration of the art of DIY, a source of inspiration for the use of the patch on his clothes, in which the designer played with all sizes and shapes.

VERSACE

Versace's extraordinary casting showed that every different variety of human being was the most important message from the show. On the other hand, the collection suffered from the today's 'Versace Syndrome': showing almost every single element of its heritage that turned the brand into an icon every single season, lacking of inspiration.

MARCO DE VINCENZO 

Vincenzo called this collection Macro/Micro, presenting inflated shapes as if seen through the magnifying lens of a child’s unbridled imagination. Everything happening in the collection is based on the principle of enlarging details that would normally be smaller and vice versa.

SPORTMAX

Sportmax celebrates 50 years of finding nobility in the ordinary. Over time, the brand's focus has always been on creating the perfect outfit for everyday life, something that is not ostentatious but still modern. 

FENDI

Feminine, independent and strong, this was the spirit that pleased the models, who wore subtle lace, lingerie, stockings and female uniforms instilled with eroticism. The dominatrix effect was successful and even the most delicate look had a twist that added strength to strength. 

GUCCI

Gucci has evolved and expanded while maintaining its aesthetics and never being repetitive. This season, the eponymous brand highlighted the different communities living in the same society. On one hand, schoolgirl dresses, pleated skirts reminiscent of high society ladies in voluminous ball gowns or austere black dresses with fleeting looks combined with wide English style top hats. On the other hand, torn stockings with harnesses, necklaces and latex dresses. The two types of women cohabited in a scandalous mixture.

MONCLER

Moncler evolved from the seasonal collections to the community formula. This season brought the exit of Pierpaolo Piccioli and new collaborations with the Northern Ireland designer JW Anderson, who revisited the iconic pieces of his eponymous brand by redesigning them with the padded signature material.

MOSCHINO

Jeremy Scott sent a message to the actual political élite who are running the world admonishing them through the lens of his ironic fashion approach. This season's woman is a modern Marie Antoinette blended with the Japanese anime aesthetic of cosplays.

Creativity continues to expand, we are in a hectic time in which to rethink and adapt to our values, the new and recurring themes that address fashion, such as diversity and sustainable production, but without a doubt, the highlight of this season that has been highly noticed in Milan, is the return of haute couture.

This season we have officially noticed that haute couture is making a come back. Streetwear fashion is coming to an end to be replaced by haute couture fashion, a moment that many - and we include ourselves - were waiting for.

Stay tuned and don't miss out on the events in the next fashion capital on the calendar, Paris.

A bientôt !