Ennio Capasa cited the heroines of Michelangelo Antonioni's movies as influences for spring. But on the evidence of the clothes, he was thinking more early sixties La Notte than mid-decade Blow-up. The one exception was a navy Empire-line minidress, its neckline and straps trimmed in royal-blue crystals, which seemed tossed in at the last minute as a nod to fashion's new direction.
Capasa was at his best when he focused on the waist, cinching it with wide raffia belts or showcasing it with a strictly corseted jacket. Slick tailoring is his strong suit; superfluous details like a row of buttons across the shoulder blades of a suede trench distracted from his collection's impact. And though embellishments like a jeweled shoulder clip or a bodice of swirling rhinestones gave his evening looks a luxe touch, the gowns would have looked just as sexy—and more modern—without them.
After a quiet beginning, the show finished with jarring colors like chartreuse, candy apple red, and kelly green that didn't jibe with the otherwise-subtle pleated and ruched cocktail dresses. Like Antonioni's films, the graphic designs that Capasa is known for are plenty powerful in black and white.
