milan fashion week: trussardi
(images via wwd)
so. yes, that’s right, opt has never actually discussed the century-old house of trussardi before today, but once again, i found a s/s 2013 collection so fetching, it simply didn’t seem like the right thing to do to turn down the opportunity to discuss. honestly, i’m not really a preppy or classicist by nature, but in my recent and neverending quest to find appropriate fashions for dressing girls older than 25, alighting on the present range at milan fashion week felt really like something. so, here we are!
when first taking in the collection, i got the distinct sense of something vintage, with maybe a bit of the new look, late-1940’s lady, combined with that natty quality that one could often interchangeably call new england or proper england-er, but in actuality, wwd reported that house designer umit benan sahin drew on the idea of “Manhattan, replete with a runway backdrop of the city’s skyline and a set mimicking a rooftop cocktail party by a water tank.”
“Sahin’s idea of how New Yorkers would dress for the occasion featured some appealing sportswear,” they carried on, “even though there was little evolution from his past collections. Languid blouses and pants came in a soft floral pattern or taxicab yellow; men’s wear elements appeared via double-breasted suits, and most dresses were rendered with a fluid touch. Given Trussardi’s heritage, Sahin added many details in leather and exotics, which often added a tougher edge to the more feminine looks. The top portion of a blue trenchcoat, for instance, was worked in snakeskin and cut like a jacket, and an orange leather panel was placed across a peach dress.”
but for my part, i liked it and wasn’t ready to dismiss so quickly. after all, in an idea i was broaching back with the outlandishly double-eighties (or whatever one might call it, given how big the shoulders were) balmain show, i reflected on the possibility that editors simply aren’t getting what the ‘regular’ people want. and sure, we all of us want something theatrical at times, but on the other hand, the everyday is a very different place from the fashion-weary eyes of critics who have done nothing more than looking at runway after runway of skirts, blouses, and dresses, longing for something distinctly different. and that’s okay. but sometimes i wish they’d acknowledge this bias, rather than seemingly believing they represent what the average engineer, solicitor, stay-at-home mum, or historian is wearing in her life.
but okay, back to the task at hand. so fashionologie jumped in to remark that “(s)oft to bold yellow pieces included everything from flowy, retro dresses to wide-leg trousers to silk blouses to double-breast suits to sporty jackets. But yellow wasn’t the only color of choice at Trussardi. The designer also sent down a bevy of blue ensembles, black leather, cognac colors, as well as white. Silhouettes were mostly loose-fitting and standouts were leather-on-leather shorts suits, a pajama-style floral getup, a luxe snakeskin jacket, and a white safari-style vest with matching pants.”
the designer, related showstudio, this season “came up with an extravagant plotline that saw his girl skip off to the USA to have a carefree time in the big apple (particular attention was placed on a unconventional cocktail party on a roof terrace). The tale clearly determined the pace of the clothing, which saw his girl shake things up in leather bombers, oversized faded print suits, midi skirts and quirky headwear. Echoing the vacation theme, his colour palette resembled the shades of dulling caravan interiors – burnt orange, canary yellow and dusty navy. Despite a proclaimed seventies focus Benan’s obsessive penchant for the eighties couldn’t help but crop up, particularly in the strong shoulders, layered leather and collared loose fitting dresses.”
and they carried on to argue that though this “was a promising vision – which for the most part elicited an intriguing collection - the end of the story turned out to be a little too predictable: the good girl slips on a good old masculine suit and never looks back. Followers of Benan’s work will already be well aware that he harbours a particular passion for women that wear menswear…but this season his passion for tomboys seemed staid, and even at points sluggish, rather than fresh. The press notes mentioned that his female protagonist was facing ‘the contrast between a conservative background and the desire to break out of the mould’ – could this theatrical young creative have been referring to himself and his work within the heritage label?”
meanwhile, style chimed in that “Benan’s instincts as a menswear designer are indisputable. He still seems unsteady, though, when it comes to women’s clothes. It’s tough to picture the girl, uptown or down, who would choose his yellow double-breasted pantsuit with five rows of mother-of-pearl buttons. Tailoring was the meat and bones of this collection, and most of it just came off as too heavy and stiff. A leather top and a leather blazer in New York City in the summer? Not a good mix. What did look smart were the shoes, sling-back oxfords with metal decoration that nailed the luxe practicality we think of as essential to this label. Otherwise, the promise that has made Benan one to watch went strangely unfulfilled this season.”
and elsewhere, offered vogue, “(i)t was bright and breezy - the first series of looks being all yellow, from buttercup to lemon, and then some loose and layered botanical prints on an overcoat and trousers outfit. It was wearable and easy - that’s the point of these clothes. They’re not supposed to present the wearer with a challenge, merely the option to look sharp and stylish. ‘I don’t want it to be Hermes in Italy. I want it to be for the new generation - the bad ass girls,’ summed up Benan Sahin. He’s on his way.”
finally, we’ve let the iht’s suzy menkes close us out by relating that the designer’s storyline “That was reduced to tailored separates, with the accent on feminized men’s wear, as in a curvy, double-breasted, nipped-at-the-waist pantsuit or a leather blazer. Mr. Benan Sahin’s style looked more comfortable as a tailored shirt, offering what the designer called ‘softness’ set against ‘rigidity.’ Sportswear is a difficult look to pin down in this era of inventive, ultralight fabrics. The designer needed to do more research into digital-age materials to pull off what was a good basic idea.” fair enough, and i’m pleased that she at least grasps that concept.
(see the full fashion show video here)
