Milan Fashion Week showcased menswear that is seeking a post-pandemic identity, blending resort wear, adventurer styles, and traditional tailoring. Dolce & Gabbana reinvented masculine silhouettes with feminine tailoring that was understated and luxurious.
Neil Barrett’s collection had a timeless feel that came from dipping into the archives, featuring crisp and uniform styles. MSGM created an off-road collection inspired by African travels, while Ralph Lauren focused on made-in-Italy detailing for everyday luxury.
Margherita Maccapani Missoni used the menswear shows to launch her new brand, Maccapani, which features easy-to-wear, form-fitting clothes meant to accompany women throughout their day.
Dolce & Gabbana’s Spring-Summer 2024 collection showcased almost 80 looks that feminized the menswear silhouettes using tailoring tricks familiarized in their women’s line.
The collection focused on a reinvention of timelessness, a departure for the duo, and showcased the designer’s fancy through the silhouettes. The overall design featured a neutral color palette featuring black, white, camel, and ivory, with an emphasis on shape and materials, rather than prints, colors, or bling.
The recent collection showcased by Dolce & Gabbana was nothing short of captivating. The tops, cleverly ruched around the waist, created a cummerbund effect that harkened back to the duo’s provocative ruched dresses. Tunics, on the other hand, featured deep-V necklines that bared the chest and boasted long, trailing sleeves.
One particular ensemble that caught my eye was a sheer organza top and pants adorned with delicate floral appliques on the cuffs, adding a touch of prettiness to the overall look. Sheer panels were strategically placed over trousers, lending an ephemeral touch to the outfit. Wide satiny trousers were expertly paired with a form-fitting mock turtleneck, a versatile and stylish option that would undoubtedly suit women of all tastes.
The tailoring in this collection was truly remarkable, as evidenced by a series of oversized tailored jackets. These jackets showcased hour-glass waistlines on long coats, ruched detailing on oversized puffers, deconstructed blazers with sheer panels, and pillowy vests. The attention to detail and the impeccable craftsmanship was evident in each piece.
To add a futuristic edge to the looks, booties and shoes that zipped up the back were incorporated. This unexpected touch elevated the overall aesthetic, particularly when paired with ribbed long johns or briefs.
Furthermore, Dolce & Gabbana made a statement by filling the front-row with an array of musical talents, including Machine Gun Kelly, Italy’s Blanco, South Korea’s Doyoung, and Australian Luke Hemmings. Their presence elicited screams of adoration from their fans as they arrived, further enhancing the electric atmosphere of the show.
Overall, Dolce & Gabbana’s recent collection showcased their unwavering commitment to innovation, impeccable tailoring, and attention to detail. Their ability to seamlessly blend classic elements with futuristic touches is truly commendable.
Emporio Armani presented a collection based on the theme of timelessness, featuring a large ginkgo leaf as the backdrop symbolizing endurance. The collection showcased the ginkgo motif in jacquards, prints, and elegant golden jewelry. The overall design featured loose silhouettes with hints of Asia and North Africa, such as super wide-leg trousers, sleeveless tunics, and robe jackets.
The color palette was mostly black and cream with a sheen, making even black standout against the nighttime background. The silhouettes were loose and elongated, with deep V’s in silken tops or long knitwear jackets. Leafy cutouts created a lace-like effect on coats. The show also featured Italian Olympic athletes wearing the uniforms they will sport during next year’s Games in Paris.
MSGM’s latest collection showcased the maturity of the brand, now at 13 years old. The creative director and founder of the fashion house, Massimo Giorgetti, revealed that the inspiration for the collection came from his recent trip to Tanzania, specifically the hours just before sunrise, which he likened to the moment when one desires to grow up but remains youthful in the head.
Models, including some older men, made a brand-first appearance in the show, emerging through mist into a striated cavern beneath Milan’s main railroad tracks, as if from a cave into the African dawn. The show was accompanied by rhythmic electronic music, creating an almost mystical experience.
Giorgetti used his own iPhone vacation images as prints and motifs for the MSGM collection. These images became Sunrise ombre on knitwear and T-shirts, frayed cotton that resembled zebra prints on monochrome tops or suits, and striated eco-leathers that imitated geological formations on overcoats. The silhouettes showcased a more grown-up feel, with oversized suits in earth tones or celeste blouses with big-pocketed cargo pants appealing to the maturing MSGM audience.
Protective canvas hats that snapped around the neck to create a collar when not in use, and soft high-top hiking boots, moccasins, and loafers finished off the looks, with jewelry featuring polished stones or raw amethyst.
Neil Barrett’s latest collection showcased crisp and clean looks that were easy to read, without being simplistic. The designer returned to his archives, looking back two decades for inspiration, taking cues from uniforms. Elements like shirts with simple epaulets, shorts with nearly invisible utility pockets, and leather waders featured in his first runway show back in 2000.
The silhouette featured neatly creased trousers, with white T-shirts acting as a layering element to give a sense of order to the looks. The color palette was mainly monochrome neutrals, with pinstripes, tight checks, and a muted, leafy graphic print breaking up the monotony.
Barrett emphasized that young consumers who have grown up on streetwear are growing up, prompting collections to evolve, which is good news for those who believe in true fashion and design.
Federico Cina paid tribute to his native Romagna with an artisanal collection that showcased raw materials and emotions, recalling the arid summers in farmers’ fields. The dresses fit perfectly, falling into complex and swishing skirts while sometimes looking purposely unfinished, knotted at the shoulders and along the hem. A macrame skirt for women and a tunic top for men finished in long dramatic black and white fringe fastened with wooden beads.
The collection featured macrame bags and chunky knits with a homemade feel, treated with peach color as if clay from the ground. The performance element continued with topless models carrying sheaves of dry wheat and naked models carrying folded blankets, creating a unique yet striking aesthetic.
Cina conceived the collection before deadly floods struck Romagna this spring, making headlines globally, and felt the collection was a tribute to the region’s population and an acknowledgment of the struggles they faced.
JordanLuca’s latest collection showcased a “post-anxiety” posture, with models leaning aggressively into their runway walks. The collection felt made for parties with a slight pretense of office wear, shirts featuring double collars worn under broad blazers, and short shorts fit for video meetings.
Kilts were worn fetchingly under double-breasted coats, while wide-legged and baggy trousers and shorts featured a curious horizontal zipper across the front. The first womenswear collection featured midi-skirts with a mermaid silhouette finished with pleated kilting details, recalling the men’s looks.
The dresses were fitted, in silk, lace, and even latex. The runway show featured a red-lit background as a reference to lipstick as the one time-proven indulgence in hard times as a show of dignity.