You have to hand it to Gabriele Colangelo; usually, it's the models who look uncomfortable, not the audience. But thanks to the rows of perplexingly narrow lucite chairs set up at the Palazzo Visconti, showgoers were pressed cheek to jowl to take in the designer's Spring offering (and it's not as if the fashion crowd is known for its girth). Perhaps this was intentional; a little personal discomfort certainly underlined the contrasting ease of the clothes. This was a collection that was, in places, leaps and bounds ahead of previous collections. Which is not to say it was a total departure: Colangelo comes from a family of furriers, and so the odd clump of animal hide is somewhat expected. Here, it covered a single breast in Amazonian fashion; elsewhere, it erupted from a midsection like a burst seam—but a series of plongé napa leather dresses (the best in pale blue, full of graphic slits that made the underlying striped shirting visible) was something that felt both entirely fresh and utterly welcome.
"Decomposition" was the keyword Colangelo cited in his runway notes, and that was mostly communicated by clunky woven tops with dangling strips or quite lovely floral embroidery inspired by the work (and especially the open warps) of Dianna Molzan. The artist's “Untitled, 2010” had special resonance for the designer, who replicated the piece's hanging threads in various places on the body. There were shades of Jacquemus in some straitjacket-style shirting, which could very well be to Colangelo's benefit: Interesting shirting (off-the-shoulder, spliced, diced) seems to be where the market is. But it was the mid-calf length skirts and smooth silk slip dresses that really held the eye.
