Today’s Jil Sander show started off as designer Rodolfo Paglialunga’s most literal interpretation yet of the house founder’s style. The superclean, slightly oversize double-breasted white coat with the high-contrast black buttons and the two-button black pantsuit that came next might’ve walked around the same space 20 or so years ago. They looked great. The dozen or so looks that followed hewed to the same general rules: monochrome, minimal, pure, precise. It felt like a chic retort to the vintage-tinged, overtly embellished, almost ditzy direction that so much of Milan has taken this season. It felt confident.
About a third of the way through the show that poise slipped. There’s little doubt that the pressure to situate yourself within the season’s big story is immense. Maximalism is ascendant in 2016. And so Paglialunga, picking up a thread seen elsewhere this week, turned to what his notes described as “artificial surfaces.” There was a silver raincoat glossier than patent and stiffer than glass—well not really, but you get the drift. The metallic pink of a long-sleeved dress didn’t have much give either. And there were shaggy mohair sweaters that were unfavorably compared to Brillo Pads by some attendees.
If there’s something that Sander is remembered for beyond her rigorous silhouettes it was her beautiful fabrics. Paglialunga has come to terms with the first part of her legacy, but in this show at least the second part gave him more trouble. One thought for the future is to avoid tech fabrics, which can often feel dry to the touch and leave customers cold, and focus on natural fibers instead. The beauty of simple silk and even cotton is something to consider as Paglialunga begins work on Resort and Spring.
