Milan Fashion Week Shakes Things Up
This season, Milan Fashion Week saw some significant changes to its official calendar. Up until now most of the established Italian fashion houses presented their collections on the same dates and times season after season. However, this time, the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana and its president, Carlo Capasa, convinced these brands to make a switch.
Prada kicked things off on the first day, Gucci ran the last leg of the fashion relay, while in between, brands like Versace, Armani and Bottega Veneta all showed at unexpected times and locations. For example, the Giorgio Armani show, which for a decade has consistently been presented at the designer’s Teatro, followed in the footsteps of its menswear show and was unveiled in a far more intimate setting at Armani’s Palazzo Orsini property. The new positioning on the calendar helped to give the entire fashion week a new dynamism and something of a sartorial breath of fresh air.
The change of schedule also loosened things up on the calendar to create more awareness for smaller brands supported by the CNMI. Up and coming labels such as Marco Rambaldi, ACT N°1 and Shuting Qui were able to rope in more top-tier fashion journalists and buyers to their shows, which were strategically placed both on the calendar and in proximity to some of the bigger show venues.
It was a move that seems fitting as this season also marked a major milestone for Vogue Talents. It has been 10 years since the famed Vogue Italia fashion editor, Franca Sozzani, launched the recurring supplement to the monthly edition, which later grew into a well regarded online platform designed to highlight talented young designers. Since its inception, the organization spearheaded by Sara Sozzani Maino is often the first to support and shine a light on emerging designers such as Marco de Vincenzo, Simone Rocha, Jacquemus, Marine Serre, Thebe Magugu, Ludovic de Saint Sernin, Arthur Arbesser, Sunnei, Stella Jean and Glenn Martens – who have all now become household names in the fashion industry. To celebrate such an impressive accomplishment, the top names in the fashion industry turned out to mark the occasion at an exhibition curated by Sozzani Maino to showcase all of the novice designers Vogue Talents has helped promote over the years.
The fashion week was also filled with many “you had to be there” moments such as the Gucci moving walkways fashion show, Prada’s surprisingly minimalistic offering and the unforgettable appearance of Jennifer Lopez to close out the Versace show in an updated version of the brand’s iconic green jungle dress, which she famously wore to the Grammys 20 years ago.
But perhaps the most heartfelt moment of all came on the last day of Milan Fashion Week, during the third annual Green Carpet Fashion Awards at the La Scala Opera House in Milan. There, the living icon, Sophia Loren honored her close friend, and equally iconic individual, Valentino Garavani with the prestigious Legacy Award. To a standing ovation, Loren presented the award to “a friend, a master, a legend, a man who revolutionized the world of fashion through his elegance, passion and style.” And with that, she handed the maestro the award and kissed him affectionately on the cheek. If ever there was an unforgettable fashion moment, that was it.
Jessica Michault is the Senior Vice President of industry relations at GPS Radar by Launchmetrics. She is also the editor-at-large for ODDA magazine and contributes to publications like the New York Times, the Business of Fashion, Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and Mixte magazine.
Jessica Michault
Jessica Michault is the Senior Vice President of industry relations at GPS Radar by Launchmetrics. She is also the editor-at-large for ODDA magazine and contributes to publications like the New York Times, the Business of Fashion, Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and Mixte magazine.
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