Giorgio Armani brought Milan Fashion Week to a triumphant close here today with a lyrical homage to female beauty which ranks as possibly the best show of his extraordinary 35-year-career. The 76-year-old designer’s collection was a passionate display of his devotion to fashion and the exquisite workmanship which can be wrought by human hands.
The soul ‘diva’, Tina Turner, long a fan of Armani’s work, watched from the front row, as the collection, for next autumn/winter, played out in a palette of black, silver and the palest, pastel-rose. Armani called the collection one ‘that cleverly emphasizes the beauty of the body, but never flaunts it.’
He introduced a new trouser shape, slightly flared and with a cuffed, kick-flare, just above the ankle, the better to show off the embroidered booties and soft suede sandals. He played with poetic proportions, as in a tiny bodice, or sculpted jacket, matched with an egg-shaped skirt, often worn over the trousers. Precious weaves, opulent embroideries and innovative textures lent a radiance to the designs, each one more detailed and astonishing than the last.