Wild Things
The decade of fashion deprivation--when gray is considered a “color” and a slipdress is a marvelous invention--is over, at least for a few visionary Italian designers who previewed their fall 1999 and winter 2000 clothes here late last week.
Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, despite recent proclamations that they were burned out on fashion, reflected their continuing design passion in extremely decorated clothes. Maybe it was fashion that was fried.
Into the serenity of their lavish palazzo courtyard burst clothes reminiscent of the wardrobes of Cher, Elton John and Elvis. Start with a monkey fur chubby jacket in electric blue, a cheek-baring neon micro-mini and perch on green leopard print knee-high harness boots with square mirrored heels.
For special occasions, pull out the beaded gold lace capri pants, top it with a coat embroidered with sequined pansies, slip on a peasant blouse and sling a wide beaded belt across your hips. However, for a single element of outrage choose from: a blue-dyed mink jacket and matching cloche hat; jeans that are denim on one side, a bold print on the other; a sheer black skirt embroidered all over with tiny silk daisies.
In her strongest collection yet, Donatella Versace beautifully decorated day and evening clothes with unusual beading: mother-of-pearl palettes on ivory day clothes; tiny twists of sea coral along dress straps, sleeve slits and fur totes; strands of turquoise beads on belts and evening gowns. She harnessed her unusual color sense to make pastel green and blue snakeskin coats and pants sexy yet gentle. Skins and furs were manipulated into new forms: Sheared mink looked like feathers; tiger-striped pony skin like printed velvet; and tinted devore velvet resembled fur. Versace, like her late brother, Gianni Versace, is showing a flair for making not just statement clothes, but items that can mingle acceptably among society ladies and rock stars.
Flamboyant fashion also found an outlet with Karl Lagerfeld at Fendi, Italy’s fur specialists. On other runways, fur has appeared more timidly as trim or as a pony skin shell or skirt.
At Fendi, fur is unapologetic and wildly unnatural-looking, head-to-toe. Using striking candy colors, Lagerfeld transformed fur, calfskin and felt into futuristic coats, pants and shells, and paired them with equally dramatic accessories. He crafted a weightless peasant blouse and corset from Astrakhan; patched snakeskin strips on the diagonal to make an A-line skirt; and fused gauze over and under fur coats. He found new partners for fur with lightly quilted coats embroidered primitively, felt skirts etched with neat geometric designs and chunky hand-knit sweaters flecked with tiny jewels.
Now that the Fendis have a new hit bag--the popular rectangular “baguette” and its smaller crescent-shaped partner, the croissant--they baked up dozens of new varieties: beaded, appliqued, knitted, pastel, bright and furry.
The fur and fairy-tale forest themes that have saturated Milan are a natural for Miuccia Prada’s Miu Miu collection, which has forest creatures and colors. This season, she blended hunting and utility themes. Elastic draw cords cinched waists of ruffled satin gowns that were paneled with high-tech mesh. Pink peasant blouses paired with thick loden woolens with built-in pouches, web belts and rib-knit cuffs. Timberland-style work boots morphed into two-tone high heels.
The result was clever and less tricky than her Prada line, but the fusion seemed forced and unable to advance either theme forward. It didn’t make the softer looks more functional or the functional seem softer.
A Careful Blend of Technology, Clothing
Fabrics and new decorative technologies often overwhelm clothes, but Laura Biagotti’s careful approach transformed cashmere into weightless skirts, cardigans and dresses, each embroidered with crystalline snowflakes. In an ode to handwork, she made sweater-dress “samplers” with multiple stitches and dresses from oversized embroidery canvasses, complete with a giant needle and yarn.
After several seasons as head designer at Missoni, daughter Angela Missoni traded on her family’s knit manufacturing expertise to craft intriguing new materials. A chunky yarn mimicked fur in a sweeping coat and jacket; afghans of crochet were wrapped into skirts and dresses; and blanket-sized shawls slung over slim knit dresses made jackets or coats unnecessary.
Technology backfired at Rifat Ozbek, whose space-based odyssey attempted to fuse, in his words, an “ultra sport glam Y2K” sensibility onto clothes. The result was a sort of oversexed athletic wear. He blended basketball jersey mesh, felted fabrics and clear vinyl into micro minis, active wear shapes and accents like leather leg warmers, stand-alone funnel-neck collars and see-through genie slippers. At the precise moment you say to yourself, “These clothes should be donated to the next ‘Star Wars’ movie,” on comes the soundtrack to the original “Star Wars.” Where’s Darth Vader when you need him?
Gianfranco Ferre, on the other hand, has a way of making outrageous clothes into convincing fashion. You may not know the woman who wears a suit with monkey fur sprouting like ermine tails at the throat and hem of a tunic, but Ferre remains one of Italy’s top-selling and highly regarded designers. Why? High drama and couture-level craftsmanship distinguish these clothes. A simple ivory tunic and pantsuit became unique and modern when he wove a narrow aluminum hoop of a belt through the tunic. Sporty utility themes slid easily into evening wear with a satiny parka, a fur-lined coat in safety orange or spiky boots with drawstrings at their tops like snow gaiters. Ferre still loves minis, sweeping maxi coats, strapless dresses and expensive materials.
Last season, Victor Alfaro’s hand-knit and soothing cashmere sweaters were a hit. The sizzle fizzled this time with a collection low on new ideas. Subtle tweed pantsuits, long denim jeans and sporty loden wool separates complemented more dazzling looks--cashmere sweaters with wide bands of crystal beading at the neck or hems; and tops beaded all over with a cobweb pattern. But lower-grade furs like rabbit and squirrel don’t dress up well, even if you tint and trim them imaginatively. The only way to spice up squirrel and rabbit is in stew.
Jil Sander remains a hard-core minimalist. She continued her simple, straightforward silhouette but added darts and a patchwork of seams to create some decoration and shape. Fabrics that looked like crumpled colored foil or greasy plastic made many pieces unappealing, especially alongside her choice of shoes--clunky platform nurse oxfords in circus colors.
