Thursday, February 24, 2011

Best of Milan Fashion Week

Prada FW11

by Grace Gordon

This season, one could get away with accusing Miuccia Prada of metaphysical conceit, and one would not be far off the mark. Just take this quote from her pre-show interview: “Women should look more innocent, rather than making girls look like women.” This message, aimed straight at the heart of her almost-twee collection, addresses the conceit of using fur, python prints, and sophisticated cuts to transmit the message of timeless innocence. Here she does as she is wont to do: take an understandable notion and turn it on its head.

The delicacy with which she exacts her razor-sharp philosophy is inimitable. No one thinks like Miuccia, but everyone wants to wear her designs. This collection is at times matchy-matchy (red dress, red belt, red gloves, red bag), and at other times so divergently different as to appear schizophrenic. Schoolgirl frocks are decorated with 50s embellishments like sweet gloves, wide belts and large brass buttons. She plays down shaggy fur by pairing it with simple drop-waist dresses, or by having the model clutch her handbag to her chest like it was a schoolbook. Glossy fish-scale dresses came in full-sleeve regalia and paired with prim gloves and caps. It is to the singular delight of the onlooker to witness the actualization of thought in the form of dress. Miuccia Prada wants the value of her collection to lie in the message it transmits, not merely in surface appearance. Yet, in an industry driven by surface appearance, this collection is, simply put: youthful, innocent, and wearable.