Giorgio Armani erected a big, black lighthouse at the end of his expansive runway, announcing a seafaring theme for his fall Emporio Armani collection.
“I have never hidden my love for the sea, a symbol of freedom and adventure,” the Italian designer said. “I reflected on the Atlantic crossing and the ships that have braved it.”
Armani took some risks, too, reviving the broad-shouldered tailoring of the ’80s for biker-style jackets, suits and trench coats, bringing to mind the roomy looks Rick Astley used to rock in his music videos.
Loose, low-crotch shorts and ballooning pants cinched with cords at the ankle were among the designer’s more radical trouser proposals.
Armani opened his very, very long show by riffing on clichés of sailor style, adding middy collars to blousons, shirts, sweaters – you name it – and also parading handsome officer greatcoats, rain slickers, and denim getups for cabin boys and engineers, too. He also threw in some women’s looks, including a striking sailor tunic and pants, all in black leather.
“I worked on the silhouette, beginning from the shoulders, which are now wide, squared and decisive,” Armani explained. “This was the starting point for all the movement in the collection, which is mostly tailored, streamlined and clean, suitable for today’s style.”
He cycled through an all-white skiwear segment for the EA7 Emporio Armani activewear sub-brand, and the clothes gradually became more and more dressy, culminating in elaborate embroideries on fancy tweeds and evening attire, some resembling the barnacles that cling to ships, others the frost that might cloud a cabin window.
Armani eventually eased up on the sailor theme to explore all manner of handsome tailoring, as the tides in fashion shift in his favor.
