Francesco Scognamiglio celebrated his tenth anniversary in a big way, choosing Milan's historic Loggia dei Mercanti as a venue and hiring a prominent international PR company to run the show. There were plenty of first-timers there tonight for this still somewhat under-the-radar designer, and it would have been news to them that the pearl-studded, creamy rubber dress was a reprise from his Fall 2008 show, the gold swan fetish mask a call back to Spring 2010.
Backstage, Scognamiglio called the collection "a celebration of my traditions." In addition to those aforementioned hits, there were a pair of rigorously cut tailleurs; an electric purple update of his favored leopard print on a floor-sweeping silk shirtdress; and several micro-minidresses in metallic lace. Statement blouses, a house specialty, came with ruffles circling the throat, coursing down the torso, or tracing the seams of sleeves.
Scognamiglio calls his label "rock-à-porter." To prove the point, the last look, a grand gown in black and blush gazar, was a replica of a dress he made for Lady Gaga at the icon's request. Rihanna is another fan of his. If he wants to turn that celebrity cred once and for all into a legit business, he'll have to keep the more perverse elements of his repertoire—i.e., the sheer-at-the-bust blouses, the rubber stuff—in the VIP section of his atelier. What we'd like to see on his runway: more of those little black dresses with a twist (one here came with a clever heart cutout in back), and another one—or ten—of those expertly tailored suits.
