The press notes for Giorgio Armani's Spring 2011 collection began with a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson: "Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist." But compared to his Emporio show on Sunday, which took some cues from Lady Gaga in an attempt to target an edgier, more urban audience, Armani played things pretty straight with his signature collection. (Even if he did sultry things up by applying a dab of shadow to his models' eyes.)
As usual, it was all about the jacket. Low-buttoning, double-breasted ones seemed to be placing a new emphasis on the chest (or at least they did when Evandro Soldati was wearing them). Armani played with buttons (shiny) and lapels (trimmed, or shawl-collared for day). He jokily paired a gingham jacket with pants in a Prince of Wales check, paraded lacquered python for the obligatory glam moment, and matched blue jackets to shirts in the same shade for a surprisingly low-key finale.
The collection was called Sun and the City—mystifying, until the sun actually did break through the sea of concrete jungle tones, in the form of chartreuse belts and suede shoes, and a chrome-yellow leather jacket. Here comes summer.
