“Chic érotique!” Lorenzo Serafini declared backstage, summing up a Philosophy collection that nimbly straddled tailoring and flou while exalting feminine curves.
He opened with tailored, waist-cinched coatdresses shaped like a man’s suit jacket and punctuated with pointy white collars, setting up a dialogue between prim and sexy.
Other tailored jackets came with hourglass waists and were shown interspersed with draped jersey dresses, some crisscrossing the torso to gently suggest bondage. Corset tops and pants, a popular combo this season, looked terrific, as did his halter-neck tops worn with tailored trousers.
There was a Studio 54 undercurrent to the show, from the halter tops and midi skirts in glossy vegan leather and the Halston-esque sequined gowns that closed the display to the Sylvie Vartan disco anthem thumping for the finale.
Backstage, Serafini insisted the collection wasn’t retro, though he name-checked 1974 French erotic drama “Story of O,” which chronicles the kinky adventures of a female fashion photographer.
“It’s just the vibe — that kind of femininity,” he clarified, also mentioning a second steamy French drama from the same year, “Emmanuelle.”
Light on color and embellishment, the collection didn’t set off many sparks on the runway. Instead, the clothes felt like future classics that also have a lot of currency, in tune with fashion’s minimalist mindset, and with sensuality simmering under the surface.
