The Emilio Pucci design team took a research trip to Japan before designing the label’s new Fall collection. The influences were too subtle to pick up from a cursory glance at the preview today, but study the garments up close and they were there: the kimono sleeves on a printed chemisier and the landscape print picked out in embroidery on a long dress. More of a reach: the rain-slicked streets of neon-lit Tokyo in the metallic sequin plissé numbers backed by the house signature prints.
Color and print are at the foundation of this Italian heritage brand. Both were well represented in the collection. Color came in unlikely combinations—the mint and burgundy of a blouse and trouser set was Harajuku-inspired, apparently. Novel prints took cues from the archives without lifting from them directly; see the metallic silk of an oversize, obi-sashed shirtdress that was the collection’s standout piece. It was simple and effortless, and keyed to the current wavelength for oversize, slouched-on proportions.
What this collection lacked was a definitive message about silhouette. There was lots of earnest exploration, but not a firm enough point of view. Pucci has been without an official creative director for two years. If the label is going to capitalize on the concept of travel, as the Japan trip seems to suggest, and on the resortwear that is at its mid-20th-century roots, that easeful shirtdress in liquid silk would be a smart place for the design team to start work for next season.
