Milan is struggling to bring out young designers, but its fashion week is not free of new products because historic houses need to renew themselves. For this fall-winter 2024-2025 women’s season which took place from February 20 to 26, Tod’s, Blumarine and Moschino presented the first collection of their respective, newly appointed artistic directors. While Sabato De Sarno at Gucci and Peter Hawkings at Tom Ford passed the equally crucial stage of the second collection.
Tod’s receives in a tram warehouse, where the podium follows the line of the rails. A symbolic place for “define a sober but also dynamic aestheticexplains Matteo Tamburini. Tod’s is aimed at people on the move, who go to work, travel ». Appointed in December, the new designer, who previously worked at Bottega Veneta, had very little time to prepare this collection; the result is all the more remarkable. By playing with proportions (loose sweater and fitted pants), materials (wool turtleneck and metal skirt), he gives singularity to wearable silhouettes, optimized by his sense of detail. A shirt is worn under another shirt, the pants have large cuffs, the stitches are so fine that you can wear a cardigan over a vest over an under-sweater… “We start in a humble way. Let’s say it’s a first step to building the future”, analyzes Matteo Tamburini.
His predecessor at Tod’s, Walter Chiapponi, joined Blumarine in November 2023. This appointment seemed to announce an aesthetic shift for the brand founded in 1977, which had distinguished itself in recent seasons with its sexy trashy aesthetic inspired by the 2000s. Chiapponi infuses romanticism and poetry into a wardrobe that does not renounce panther prints or in eye-catching colors. Between the long floral dresses and the lace microshorts, Chiapponi doesn’t want to choose sides, which makes the whole thing a little disjointed, but not devoid of charm.
At Moschino, Adrian Appiolaza, who spent the last ten years at Loewe, was appointed on January 30, following the sudden death of his predecessor, Davide Renne, in November 2023. “With the time available, I tried to be pragmatic: I am a collector of archives, so I immersed myself in those [du fondateur] Franco Moschino. I sought to bring up to date the most identifiable aspects of his work, such as his theatricality”, declares the designer whose collection succeeds in reconciling fantasy and wearability. Thin embroidered babydoll straps on a black evening dress, an elegant draped top in the colors of Italy, a trompe-l’oeil printed suspender belt on an ivory silk skirt… so many offbeat elements for a wardrobe where we also find a beautiful blue shirt or well-tailored suit pants.
Transparent veil and officer’s coat
The exercise of the second collection can prove even more difficult than that of the first: the designer has had time to refine his message and no longer benefits from the indulgence of the beginnings. At Tom Ford, Peter Hawkings has chosen to once again revive the sexy glamor of the 2000s, when the house was at the height of glory. The women’s legs are elongated by their stiletto heels, the shoulders of the jackets are square, the waists are slim, the necklines are plunging. A strapless jumpsuit in strips of leather hugs the body, a long turtleneck dress in transparent and iridescent veil hides nothing. When they are not exploring the sensual vein, the clothes express a form of opulent authority, with officer’s coats with gold buttons or strict suits in crocodile-style patent leather. Peter Hawkings’ proposal has the merit of being well executed and of contrasting with current fashion rather dominated by discreet luxury, but to last, it will undoubtedly need to demonstrate more originality.
Sabato De Sarno is also plowing his furrow. His first women’s collection at Gucci in September 2023 contrasted radically with the baroque romanticism of his predecessor, Alessandro Michele: he offered a wardrobe that was simple in form (jeans, black coat, gray sweatshirt, etc.), refined to the extreme. This season, do it again. Two or three familiar elements are enough to compose a silhouette: absinthe green bubble coat and burgundy boots; beige patent leather buttoned jacket and platform pumps. Black floral lace dress and matching thigh-high boots. Dresses and coats, no pants. Very few patterns, monochrome or two-tone silhouettes.
“Looking at things from a point of view that is not the one you expect, not following the rules: this is my way of dreaming without rushing, of stratifying my aspirations as if they were the bricks of a house », details Sabato De Sarno in his note of intent. By reiterating his love of simplicity, it becomes his signature, and not just an expedient to sell more clothes. Is Gucci, which was originally a leather goods brand, intended to represent a sartorial avant-garde? This does not seem to be Sabato De Sarno’s opinion: “My dreams, like my fashion, are in touch with reality. Because I’m not looking for another world to live in, but rather ways to live in this world. »