The original Fiorucci store in Milan's Galleria Passarella was not far from Palazzo Reale, where the Au Jour Le Jour show took place today. In the late '70s, when photographer Oliviero Toscani created a series of memorably sexy ads for Elio Fiorucci, the designer became an advocate of glitz, glitter, disco escapism, and bright pink zebra-print tights. All of that was in Au Jour Le Jour's Fall collection, at times too literally, together with an abundance of minidresses, flares, and long pencil coats in garishly hypnotic microprints. This was nightclubbing as a state of mind, complete with record-shaped bags.
No more a girl barely out of adolescence, not yet an adult, the Au Jour Le Jour woman is clearly growing up—or whatever playing the disco queen means. "It is a natural process," said designers Mirko Fontana and Diego Marquez backstage. "As we are growing up ourselves, we want the collection to evolve. This season, for instance, we avoided our trademark overblown prints and went for a personal take on glamour."
The move away from the hyper-pop worked. Clothes looked fresh and fast, shapes were easy, and the overall look was amusing—AJLJ is about positive feelings, that's for sure. This collection, however, lacked depth. It looked like it was put together after some quick image research on Tumblr, with no further elaboration. Then again, youth is all about superficiality. Or is it not?
