"I think it's time to bring fashion closer to reality, a tangible reality," Federico Curradi said during the Iceberg presentation, which was held again in a magnificent Milanese palazzo. The non-show format suits him. Worn by models standing still on a giant podium made of books piled one on top of the other, the collection was a captivating exercise in progressive nostalgia. The analogue '70s were referenced in the rusty, earthy, and organic color palette, as well as in a few shapes and details—straight leather blousons, striped jumpers. But it was just a distant echo, more a hint than a faithful reproduction. Curradi is not a designer prone to homage. Rather, he said, he was interested in "the radicalism and organic intellectualism of a unique time in Italian culture."
There was something raw and conceptual, in an Arte Povera kind of way, in both the setup and the clothes. Curradi claimed inspiration from Michelangelo Antonioni's Zabriskie Point, which depicted the highs and the contradictions of radical culture, and whose striking scenes were painterly amalgamations of desert hues. A stain pattern—think action painting explosion—looked particularly appealing printed on a satin bomber. It was created by Curradi to mimic the explosion that closes the movie.
"What I am drawn to," Curradi said, "is the idea of working with something that you can smell, touch, manipulate. The virtuality of our digital world is a nightmare." This writer agrees.
