Massimo Giorgetti is a pragmatic utopian: “There’s a constant struggle inside me between my down-to-earth side and the childish Peter Pan who dreams big and silly,” he joked. Striking the balance between these two has turned MSGM into a healthy, profitable brand, while making Giorgetti living proof that you can be good at being a successful entrepreneur, and equally good at keeping it romantic.
For pre-fall he riffed on the familiar MSGM repertoire, injecting it with a coming-of-age-but-not-quite yet moody sentiment, “a sort of nostalgia for that chrysalis phase when girls are about to become women, but still linger in a space between the two,” he said. “They dream about the future, but they’re not yet ready to grow up.”
Mirroring this push-pull dynamic, the collection featured some sophistication and formality mixed with more playful, youthful MSGM ingredients. A quiet, almost bourgeois palette of navy, camel and grey contrasted with the acid Day-Glo tones Giorgetti favors, and with the imaginative, slightly childish prints made in collaboration with Italian artist Lorenza Longhi.
Elsewhere, the codes of college uniforms—the varsity jacket, the pleated miniskirt, heraldic patches, argyle jumpers—were given a less sporty, dreamier feel.
Ruching abounded throughout—sprouting delicately from the seams of a boxy car coat, appliquéd as asymmetrical flourishes on a pair of straight-cut denims, blooming with effervescence on a frilly poet blouse in white poplin. On the same note, an A-line minidress had a built-in bustier blooming with bows and rosettes; a heart-shaped motif printed on masculine shirts, jumpers and short shirtdresses continued the romantic theme, adding an energetic boost of color. “I wanted to keep it real,” said Giorgetti. “But laced with sentiment, some whimsy and romance.”
