VMAN Designer Portraits
Belstaff“The Belstaff Spring/Summer 2009 collection celebrates the modern-day global traveler. It’s elegant, in the way a person of great culture is elegant, combining traditionalstyles with innovative fabrics, often with a cosmopolitan touch.” - Michelle Malenotti
Paul Smith“It’s all about English cricket, rock, Mick Jagger, and a new silhouette: narrow shoulders, soft volume, and front-pleated trousers pulled in at the waist.” - Paul Smith
Missoni“This Spring collection evokes the beautiful creatures of Saint Tropez and the Mediterranean coast, and images of Alain Delon from La Piscine. While fresh with hints of humor and irony, the collection still has handmade and artisanal elements, which make it very precious to me.” - Angela Missoni
Gucci“While designing the Spring 2009 men’s collection, the band MGMT’s music and irreverent style provided a synergy for the tropical, freestyle approach to dressing that I wanted.” - Frida Giannini
Bottega Veneta“The collection is designed with an individual in mind. We used a different model for each look to underline this point, and to inspire a unique approach to dressing.” - Tomas Maier
Kris Van Assche“The Spring/Summer 2009 collection revolves around the idea of wearing a suit to the beach; I imagined how surfers would wear a suit. I continue to play with the idea of using classic menswear elements and making them relevant and wearable for today’s sportswear generation.” - Kris Van Assche
Salvatore Ferragamo“The inspiration for my Spring collection was opulent, sophisticated India: where neutral hues explode in an infinite variety of tones and shades, and color is unexpected, like saris in the desert. The imperceptible detailing is a key and luxurious standout: embroidery, bewitching gold-wire motifs and exquisite ruffles on silk shirt fronts.” - Massimiliano Giornetti
Calvin Klein Collection“This collection can easily be summed up as graphic, bold, modern, and very American.” - Italo Zucchelli
Versace“Next season, it’s all about putting on your best to show the world that you are doing just fine—formal, but with an informal attitude. Men should interpret formality with an open mind, without boxing themselves in to the dictionary definition.” - Donatella Versace
Giorgio Armani“My collection was inspired by modern India and its vibrant colors. It features a delicate color palette with brighter oriental tones, interpreted in my signature style.” - Giorgio Armani
Which was your favourite and why?
For me personally, either Paul Smith or Giorgio Armani.
I enjoyed the softer interpretation of classic tailoring provided by Smith. His collection, although not ground breaking, was well constructed, classically inspired pieces, which are no doubt important features in the current financial climate.
The Giorgio Armani collection for me was a wonderful artistic depature, the vibrant colours and Eastern inspired silhouettes were beautifully creative. As to how practical the pieces were, it is debatable, however they certainly did inspire the mind. Indeed that is after all the aim of a fashion show. No doubt the Salvatore Ferragamo collection provided the more functional execution of these inspirations.
Admittedly, I do find the statement by Tomas Maier for Bottega very true, however for me there was a little something missing from the clothing. I found myself a little detached from the collection, which was a shame.
Currently playing: It's Me - Joe Thomas
xxxx