Antonio Berardi is British-Italian, born in England to Italian parents. He has always been part of the fashion scene in London, where he has often presented his collections since 1995. Everyone assumes that he’s based in the U.K., but he’s actually lived in Milan for quite a while. His home and studio, which he recently renovated, are in one of the city’s poshest and most elegant neighborhoods. Apparently, the time felt right for a celebration, because Berardi has decided to open the atelier not only to friends, but to press and buyers. He’ll present his Fall collection in February with a series of intimate salons chez soi. It’s a big step, and also a game-changing move. Welcome home, Antonio!
Showing on a more personable scale makes good sense for Berardi, whose skills as a tailor are best appreciated up close. The intricacy of the cuts and the refinement of the details; the meticulous study of fabrics and how they adapt to the body; his approach to shapes—it all adds up to a unique style with a made-to-measure flair. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves.
Berardi’s Pre-Fall collection was inspired by manga cartoons and by The Handmaiden, a thriller by the Korean director Park Chan-wook with psycho-erotic undertones. He matched the film’s imagery with a modern utilitarian feel for elevated daywear that looked quite spectacular. The outerwear offer was expanded and treated with imaginative panache, as in a hybrid kimono-cape. Cut in cotton jacquard printed with quite hallucinogenic motifs (“It’s bonkers, like Jeff Koons on acid,” Berardi said.), it was slashed with metallic zippers to make its shape fully transformable and ductile. The same feel of architectural malleability and experimentation was given to a series of black chintz-ed cotton outfits. Worthy of note was a masculine shirt, impeccably tailored if seen from the front, but revealing an elaborate accordion-pleated, obi-esque “sculpture” on the back. It was a testament to the illusory element inherent in Berardi’s elaborate style. “If it wasn’t complex, I wouldn’t enjoy it,” he said.
