Milan AW 10/11 – Highlights On- and Off-the-Runway.

January 17, 2010

While Milan may be considered the stagnant pool of conservative menswear by many, I’m consistently impressed. You see, I think the chief thing to remember when considering Milan menswear is that it’s not the outré sartorial experimentalism that’s so commended in London and Paris but more of a re-working of the classics that constitute the modern man’s wardrobe i.e. you’ll not find conceptual headpieces or anatomy-armor accessories (I’m looking at you Katie Eary, LDN’s finest) here, but you will see that a staple like the blazer, or the trench, is subtly updated.

And, not to sound too conservative in my speech, but isn’t that menswear is all about? Re-working/ever-so-slightly altering what already works? Sometimes that old adage rings true – if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. And so, a few highlights from Milan AW 10/11 so far…

^ Jil Sander AW 10/11 – Raf returns to a v. bare palette for the colder season but guarantees interest by throwing a host of geometric shapes into the mix.

^ Burberry Prorsum AW 10/11 – If only I could’ve congratulated Bailey when I met a few months back. Surely his best performance in quite a spell, countless re-workings of the trench (cinched here, belted there, zippers and asymmetry everywhere…) and much more experimentation with silhouette than this house is accustomed to.

^ Costume National AW 10/11 – Ennio Capasa continues in the asymmetrical vein and adds a dash of glamour to the mix. It seems turning menswear femme might not be the function of Miuccia any longer.

And because it’s often what’s off-the-runway that inspires what will be on it next…