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Designers have been making an impression at their new brands during Milan Fashion Week.
Creative positions can sometimes be a game of musical chairs: Matteo Tamburini showed his first collection for Tod's on Friday just hours before his predecessor there, Walter Chiapponi, made his debut as creative director of Blumarine.
Adrian Appiolaza premiered his first collection for Moschino in a bittersweet moment just a month and a half after being named. His appointment followed the sudden death of David Renne just 10 days into his tenure.
Here are the highlights from designer debuts during Milan Fashion Week, mostly womenswear previews for Fall-Winter 2024-25.
Having just six weeks to pull together a collection forced Argentinian Appiolaza to be very decisive, creating a collection that he said “didn’t feel too overthought.”
He plunged into the archives, taking inspiration from fashion house founder Franco Moschino’s sense of subversion, love of archetypes and trompe l’oeil playfulness.
Appiolaza’s vision invoked a dreaminess. Looks were as if being roused from sleep, and the garments were at times surreal — turbans created from shirt sleeves, or a cowboy hat that was unfinished in the back, like a piece of stage scenery seen only from the front. A top was constructed out of men’s ties; a golden bowtie hung sideways as a necklace. Extravagant strands of pearls were worn under a sheer dress.
The feminine silhouette was defined by ruffles, bustles and slip dresses, complemented by men’s vests fitted with garters, oversized cloth shirts and masculine trousers.
“The idea was trying to convey Franco’s universe. It was not really about creating a ready-to-wear collection, but something that told a story," Appiolaza said backstage after the Thursday evening show.
While many brands made circumspect reference to global conflicts, responding mostly with comfort collections of cozy clothes, Appiolaza was more direct, with garments with peace signs or the word PEACE written capitals. “I thought it was a good idea to bring peace as a universal message," the designer said.
Closing the show, a Black model wore a top of the Italian tricolor, green, white and red, which Appiolaza said was part of the collection’s message of inclusion. Some social media commentors read it also as a statement about the war in Gaza: the Palestinian flag is green, white, red and black, the black reflected in the closing look’s monochrome skirt and collar detailing on the tricolor top with a trailing tassel. The model carried a piece of bread.
Matteo Tamburini’s journey with Tod’s departed from a Milan tram depot, with the city’s distinctive vintage orange trams serving as a backdrop.
“We selected this location because it speaks to dynamism, which is closely linked to the Tod’s aesthetic. The collection was thought for people who travel, who move in the world," Tamburini said backstage, starting with the daytime workhorse Di Bag and the trademark driving moccasin.
The mostly monochrome looks featured rich leather dresses, skirts and overcoats, made cozy with layered, twisting knitwear. Trenches were oversized; shirts were layered one over the other; trousers featured deep cuffs, while jacket shoulders were slightly enlarged. Bags were soft, molding into the body. Belts had oblong buckles resembling a vehicle grating. The driving shoe featured long tassels, for movement.
Tamburini said the collection reflects the duality of Milan, at once an expression of the bourgeois and Italy's industrial power.
Tod’s group recently announced an operation to delist the company. Speaking on the sidelines of the show, chairman Diego Della Valle told reporters there was no reason to sell the business after the operation is complete. “We have a family business with young people who want to do this job. What could be better?’’ he asked.
Front-row guests included Chinese actor Xiao Zhan, U.S. actor Larsen Thompson and South Korean singer Jungwoo.