Antonio Marras and his wife Patrizia are among fashion’s great storytellers. If they published their press notes in a book, they’d be a literary sensation. For resort they added another chapter to their entertaining narration. The tale was called “The Story of Orlando: Confessions of an Apprentice Greengrocer,” and what follows is a synopsis.
“Once upon a time, in a day of intense restlessness, Orlando asked: could it be true that tending to a vegetable garden can improve your moods? So Orlando took to the kitchen garden and started working on tomatoes, pumpkins, and cabbages. They pruned the peach trees, They fed the hens who were hungry. Orlando’s bad mood disappeared. The plants reciprocated their love. They said: “Orlando, you’re one of us; it doesn’t matter from where you come, who you are, what’s your sex, from now on your name will be Neptune.”
Neptune was the actual name of the collection’s model, a transgender boy of ethereal charm, who looked ravishing in Marras’s extravagant creations—more extravagant than usual, it must be said. He provided Neptune with a sweet diva-esque wardrobe, crazily patchworked from upcycled scraps of fabrics; assembled from brocades, paisleys and broderie anglaise; and embellished with abundant sequins. Cotton sundresses were printed with watercolor drawings made by Antonio of beetroots, turnips, and cherries; military parkas were transformed into bejeweled specimens and appliquéd with intarsia of silk foulards. Humongous tailored blazers looked as vast as capes; aprons originally fit for watering the vegetation were encrusted with animalier panels, embroidered patches, and baroque trimmings, and made into evening wear.
“Dressing up is a joy, it’s fun, it’s a game,” mused Antonio. Neptune goes to the vegetable garden dressed as he would for a Hollywood party. Patrizia chimed in: “Going to a party, peeling tomatoes. It doesn’t matter who you are, a farmer or an actress, or a sensitive soul like Neptune. The garden puts you at peace with the universe.”
