A blank page and a pencil: such has been the starting point of every Giorgio Armani collection since 1975. Today Mr. Armani brought that moment of beginning to this collection’s moment of publication at his downstairs showspace on Via Borgonuovo, via the pointed inclusion of an extremely large pencil at the end of his runway.
Armani drafted his menswear masterpiece decades ago, but the cycle of fashion means that it is constantly subject to revisions, elisions, alterations, and edits; every season sees a new layer placed over the one before. This one contained a direct reference to his very first menswear collection in the close up print of raffia weave used in roomy blousons, pants, and bags, but that archival gesture was not the point. “The collection surely recalls the past, without making it all about the past,” he said afterwards.
Yes, the long almost shirtlike cut of the light jackets, as in this season’s Emporio collection partially informed by his consideration of Asian dress, had the same fluid elan of those famous pieces worn by Richard Gere so many years ago. And, yes, the four suits that closed this otherwise very holiday collection contained some silhouettes that any long-in-the-tooth Hollywood rep will fondly recall from the pre-Netflix glory days. However you could just as easily conjure the image of this collection being worn by a new generation, in a new context, with stories of their own to tell.
Collarless jackets in gently textured seersucker, lattice framed grip bags, layered logo silk shirting and foulards, silkily flowing oversized pearl-toned trenches, slingback loose-weave espadrilles, breezy separates in tie-print silks, and a garment dyed indigo twinset were amongst the wearable narrative devices offered. Armani said he had his models carry their straw hats rather than wear them because they are more of a beachside piece than something for the city: similarly he said he avoided shorts.
Just before those suits, a near-all white section included an especially magnificent field jacket and cargo pants. This was Armani turning back to his blank page and readying his pencil for the next chapter. As he pointed out, it is by filling those blank pages, over and over, that he taught himself how to become a designer in the first place.
