It was one of the best shows of Milan Fashion Week so far. It had nothing to do with anything else we’ve seen on the runways (as yet) and was all the more refreshing for it.
Here are the important notes on Versace’s bold, sexy-cool military school...
THE LOCATION
New this time, we were in Milan's old Fiera, where the city's fashion week used to be held, currently being transformed into a modern urban area called CityLife, designed by architects including Zaha Hadid. We were in a concrete-floored, stadium-sized, floodlit concert venue called CityLife Palace. Big place.
THE SOUNDTRACK
‘This song is dedicated to women everywhere, whatever colour, sex or religion,’ boomed the voiceover. That, mixed with lyrics from Talking Heads’ Once In A Lifetime ('You may find yourself in a beautiful house'), served as a heady feminist mix.
THE MODEL ARMY
Racquel Zimmermann opened. Natasha Poly closed. And in between, all our favourite models. Actually, make that glamazons: Lineisy Montero, Anna Ewers, Behati Prinsloo, Jaime Bochert, Maria Carla Boscono, Edie Campbell, the skinhead lookalikes Ruth Bell and Kris Gottschalk, Gigi Hadid, Liya Kebede, Joan Smalls... And how they rocked those military looks!
THE FASHION
Army green, military beige, tan, camo and animal print. Flashes of neon, stripes of suede, matte and shine. Donatella opened on a fitted military jacket, cinched with an army belt, natch - that was it, with lots of leg. Leopard-print trouser suits. Fishnet. Pencil skirts slashed up to there. Oxblood snakeskin cut into curvy coats. Form-fitting dresses in patchworks of cheetah and tiger. Oversized cardigans and cobweb dresses patched with camo. Officer’s trouser suits in army shades with bandeau bras beneath. Sinewy, plunging printed swathes of chiffon for finale gowns. Wow.
THE ACCESSORIES
Towering platforms sandals worn with army socks, of course, or flatform sporty sandals. Camo, sequinned rucksacks, some with neon straps. And multiple glossy leather bags, some big enough to hold a machine gun, others a pistol.
