After a shadowy tableau vivant had impressed on his audience the high-tech efficiency of Emporio Armani's EA7 skiwear, Giorgio Armani took us back to his high-touch comfort zone with a collection shaped by the cosseting comfort of knitwear, every which way from sleek jersey to plush chenille. His favored trouser shape was a legging ribbed at the ankle over which he layered cropped blazers, trim jackets with slash pockets, or second-skin leathers. The collection got its edge from the bright silver zippers that trailed up a trouser leg on a diagonal, or outlined the lapel of a jacket. Otherwise, Armani opted for a symphony of soft, in pants with an alpaca fuzziness, in shawl-collared layers, in the needle-punched dégradé of fading plaids, and in his unstructured outerwear. A recurring detail was a paintbrush swoosh woven into jackets, coats, even pants. It had a Japanese delicacy that aestheticized the clothes. It's always intriguing to see Armani incorporating such refined touches into his Emporio collection. He just never stops.
