BEAUTY: Clothing--Emporio Armani

I love Giorgio Armani: I say it every time I blog about his work. Every season for his own eponymous label or for his Emporio Armani line (the more causal and sportier version of Armani), I swoon at what his house creates and sends down the runway. I respond most to designers, designs, and shows that have a strong inspiration and concept, and a near-performance art presentation. But Armani does not need concepts. He has been creating his own sense of easy luxury for nearly half a century now, and it's still fresh and relevant today.

He deconstructed the men's suit in the 80s, turning it into something soft and sensual, something sexy and flowing, without altering the basic concept of what it was. He removed layers of felting inside suits, making them relaxed and able to behave like thin silk. Just take a look at the iconic clothing from the film "American Gigolo" and you will see what I mean. It was soft and casual with a sense of effortless power. This revolution rippled out into the industry and we see its waves even now: designers still grapple with ways to make suiting less stiff, to make clothing more luxe without being precious, and to make pieces with more innate ease without being sloppy. In short, to make clothes more Armani. But no one does Armani like Armani. Clean lined and impeccably tailored, Armani's sensibility is about luxe fabrics and honoring the way a garment hangs and drapes on the body (of both men and women).

There is something else I really respond to in each Armani collection and that is a vague sense, a shadow, an echo of historical fashion. The way a jacket or coat is cut or its stance, the inclusion of waistcoats, belted outerwear, loose cut and high waisted trousers...it all reminds me of...what, the 1920s and 30s? The 1880s? The 1940s and 50s? Yes to all of it. But there is one more layer that can pop up in an Armani collection and that is an ethnic or geographical inspiration. And for this SS '24 collection shown at Milano Moda Uomo, the motif for the collection was a simple gingko leaf. However, this deceptively simple object signified something vast and historic: a beautiful, Zen-like Japanese sensibility. Armani's interest in clean lines and luxe fabrics seems to be the perfect fit for such a silhouette and style of dress.

The gingko leaf was embroidered and cut out on jackets and woven into silk jaquards. Large gingko leaves were embroidered over lattice work tops that recall shoji screens. Three dimensional florals make an appearance as well. The shape of garments echoes kimonos, samue and other temple garments, and the gloriously super wide cut trousers seem like elevated hakama. I do love the low cut vests paired with Buddhist tasseled beads. And just like the Spring Summer '24 shows from Saint Laurent and Dolce & Gabbana, EA also used sheer fabrics like organza to great effect. And just like those previous collections, a restricted color palette shifts the focus to structure and material. It's a masterful collection.

https://www.armani.com/