Ermanno Scervino has always celebrated a womanly, voluptuous style, rooted in his fondness for a timeless idea of Italian diva-esque glamour. Yet he's been able to play it with a modern flair, giving even his hourglass silhouettes a neat éclat. It helps that Scervino is fastidious about execution; he's adamant that everything has to be made with the best available Italian craftmanship. Going through the lineup with him means being shown in minute detail all the intricacies of his atelier’s techniques.
For Pre-Fall, the collection revolved around a well established masculine/feminine duality: "I think that a woman is at her most appealing when she's able to play with her masculine side in a seductive way," said the designer, who's apparently convinced that seduction is a woman's main activity. And pronto he provided her with the weapons to bring home the prize, by way of a complete arsenal of hyper-feminine lacy numbers paired with masculine elements for maximum contrast. A good example of this idea was a black satin and lace-encrusted fitted cocktail dress, over which a houndstooth coat with a sumptuous fox collar was thrown with utter nonchalance.
The chemistry between masculine and feminine was evidenced throughout the lineup; results were balanced and quite convincing, with a practical twist that softened a certain decorative penchant. A black leather perfecto was worn over a long dress in chantilly lace, and a romantic white frilly blouse was paired with a sporty caban and jogging pants. Scervino is no minimalist; he can't help indulging his flair for embellishment. In his hands, even the most oversized, utilitarian parka becomes an object of desire, cinched at the waist, and richly quilted or lavishly embroidered with eye-catching, exotic motifs.
