FashionZoot reports
PITTI: "FUTURE IN THE PAST" TRUSSARDI A/W 2011-12
Discovering or re-discovering our roots is usually the best way to understand who we are and where we are going.
Trussardi Creative Director Milan Vukmirovic based the research for Trussardi 1911’s A/W 2011-12 menswear collection – presented yesterday during the Pitti Uomo event at Florence’s Stazione Leopolda – on this truism.
By Anna Battista
The Dante Trussardi glove factory opened in Bergamo in 1911, so this year marks the 100th anniversary of the Italian fashion house, and, moving from the maison’s heritage, Vukmirovic tried to rediscover the past to get a glimpse of the future.
Leather-working has been the essence of the Trussardi fashion house since its early days, so reinventing some musts from men’s wardrobe using leather was a very logical step to start this exploration of a “future in the past”.
High quality was the keyword in all the pieces, from the ones entirely made of leather such as the ultra-light chamois T-shirts, biker jackets, lamb ponchos and pony trench coats, to the garments – among them Western style shirts or tops – in which leather was used only for small details like pockets, appliquéd patches around the shoulders or matte lapels creating contrasts with the shiny black fabric used for the jackets.
Surface elaboration revealed as the best thing about the entire collection: simple inserts, elaborate zigzag patterns on deerskin jackets, textured woven leather motifs, leather ribs or printed leather were cleverly added here and there in the garments.
There was obviously a strong focus on the accessories, from briefcases to weekend bags, in fabric or suede, to the boots, crisscrossed by belts and straps, a trick that allowed Vukmirovic to play and combine different kind leathers and fabrics in the same design.
Everything was polished, stylish and well-done but there was a major problem, there was no innovation for what regarded the silhouettes.
The collection verged at times towards Rick Owens moods, though Vukmirovic toned down the darkest and most oppressive atmospheres.
In a nutshell, there was a study in the possibilities that leather variation could offer without including too many dramatic variations, since everything was more or less already seen and rather safe in terms of shapes, though there were occasional sparkles of hope in the leather coats with woolen inserts around the waist.
The most revelatory moment of the evening came at the very end of the catwalk show when a collage of images chronicling the history of the maison was projected on the six screens surrounding the huge walls of the Stazione Leopolda.
Moving from the very first ads about Dante Trussardi’s gloves, the images showed iconic moments from the history of the fashion house, from the catwalk show organised at Milan’s central railway station in the mid-80s and attended by 3,000 people, to Trussardi’s collaborations with Alitalia and Alfa Romeo.
Images of Pavarotti, Dario Argento and Rita Levi Montalcini were also screened, while the voice of the late Nicola Trussardi could be heard on the speakers stating “There is a relationship between culture and fashion”.
As the focus moved from cases, trunks and assorted accessories to Trussardi’s restaurants and art exhibitions organised by the Fondazione Nicola Trussardi and while another sample reminded us that “fashion allows you to experiment with creativity”, most Italians in the audience were probably hit by a terrible revelation, in the last few decades Italy has lost its creativity, craftsmanship and will to launch interesting and brave collaborations and events.
In the past, Trussardi showcased his collections in places such as La Scala, Piazza del Duomo, the Milan Triennale, the Palazzo della Borsa, the San Siro racetrack and the Accademia di Brera, and didn’t despise collaborating with different people from the world of culture, even with horror directors such as Dario Argento and Lamberto Bava, things that aren’t happening anymore even though the Trussardi fashion house currently seems to be enjoying new commercial strength.
A final appearance of the Trussardi family scions, Vukmirovic and, the ultimate Trussardi accessory, a greyhound, on the runway, brought back not only more melancholy, but a bit of bitterness for what Italy has lost since Nicola Trussardi died.
Probably there were quite a few members in the audience going back with their minds to that distant 9th March 1986 in Milan’s Piazza del Cannone, when the A/W 1986-87 Trussardi Action catwalk show was presented with a re-enaction of the opening from Argento’s Suspiria that culminated with a maniac killing the models right on the runway.
Maybe, if we could “kill” fashion once more, then we could reinvent it from scratch, keeping in mind the real lesson that historical fashion houses and companies really taught us, a lesson based on high quality, craftsmanship, research and on a strong link with art and culture.
Photos by Katsuo Mifreki
