Milano Unica F/W 2017-2018 Trends
A narration of trends that expresses the sublime side of elegance
Elegance is evergreen, transcending fashion and pervading the spirit. It is movement: the one created by the artist when he divides the canvas; the one generated by an architect when he designs the vanishing points with his pencil or the one developed by a weaver when he weighs fabrics and immediately understands their structure.
The creativity of six great personalities results in a narration of trends that expresses the sublime side of elegance. These six personalities are apparently juxtaposed, but only in relation to the expression of their art. As matter of fact, they are much closer in rigor and freedom from conventions: the artist Alberto Burri versus the architect Renzo Piano, an Italian artist, Lucio Fontana, and a Japanese artist, Katsushika Hokusai, and, lastly, the designer Walter Albini and the Milanese architect Piero Portaluppi.
ALBERTO BURRI vs RENZO PIANO - two artists linked by the expressivity of the material composing their work. Layer after layer, their work unveils different aspects each time, enriching or transforming into something else, as normally happens with metals, when they are put in a furnace and magically take on completely different colors and shapes. So, the double felt is processed with oxidation effects, charred prints and rubber welds, while wool cloth is enriched by directional reliefs and the yarns are proposed as bouclé embellished with relief patterns and blackened iron stamps, both with a peat and metal detailing effect. The colors: metal hues, camel, off-white and rust red.
LUCIO FONTANA vs KATSUSHIKA HOKUSAI - When geometry meets the ellipsis of Nature. Stark signs against vaults, linear strokes against circular ones, the white that lets black filter through, West against East. All this is meant to come down to one single concept: the shape of things, both abstract and real. In this case there are no hues, the colors cannot predominate over the essence of the shape and are reduced to a single duo: black and white. The focus of this theme lies in the experimentation of geometric, 3D, graphical, full and empty shapes combined with the idea of contact with the materials. Fabrics and accessories feature sophisticated, overlapped and elaborate shapes, providing a strong tactile reflection.
WALTER ALBINI vs PIERO PORTALUPPI - A Lombard designer and a Milanese architect, both lovers of classicism and both also maniacal about details. The third theme proposed by Milano Unica makes reference to these two geniuses, as spokespersons of a sumptuous yet irreverent, classical yet not arrogant elegance. Portaluppi's diamond-shaped floorings inspire new prints, while Albini's passion for jersey push further research for the thousands options provided by this material. The cutwork in the architect's wainscoting recall the chiseled fabrics or the embroidery of the accessories, while Albini's passion for interior design fabrics sparks research for a re-interpretation of tapestry in relation to jacquard.