Dsquared² MFW Fall 2015

When the Catens aka Mickey and Judy,  put on a show it always me reminds me of those old Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney musicals where one inevitably turns to the other and says “why don’t we put on a show” and so they do with a chorus of 50 extras singing and dancing, all fully costumed.

That’s how I see these shows as they really are just formulaic spectacles designed to entertain rather than promote anything else. One might postulate that ese  show are nothing more than PR events  to promote the brand rather than show a new collection. 

This season is about Eskimos and Indians and nomads and maybe even some AWOL period soldiers, banditos or some extras from the Road to Morocco or maybe 2000B.C.

So with all that base information, you can expect to see parkas and Indian blankets, serapes, trapper hats, military jackets and even some tights that look like full body henna tattoos. Put it all together and “Let’s put on a fashion show!” My bad here or what?

Oops and it almost slipped my mind to mention the trapper furs which still might have teeth marks from the steel traps and the trapper boots or maybe they are caveman boots with fur lashed onto them …. The purpose of such folly evades me as even if there is something to be seen here one needs to strip away the multitudinous layers of stuff that will camouflages it, I  doubt anyone needs a new jean or a new cargo pant that falls under the category of unwearable .. or for that matter dresses that look like the undergarments of a nickle a dance chorus girls from the local saloon.

Milano Antipasto .. Spring 2015.. Fendi, Prada, Moschino, D Squared, Max Mara

With the tsunami of shows that is now fashion week in every city, it seems necessary to do a few group reviews or commentaries rather than spotlight one particular brand or designer. What also happens is that there are some who rarely rate any favorable words and are becoming rather boring when it comes to reviewing. Then there some brands that look good but there is still not enough substance to substantiate a full-fledged review so in order to accommodate all of the above today is the Milan Antipasto.

Max Mara: this has always been the collection to look at within its specific group and this season is no different. The issue here is not he clothes, it is the terribly confusing and ridiculous way it has been styled. One can’t appreciate the beautiful clothes because the viewer is rendered with a bad case of vertigo due to all the pattern on pattern styling. Some solids would surely have been a great antidote not to mention that one might have actually been able to see the clothes. I mean look at it!!

Moschino: now that Elle Woods, Paris Hilton and Barbie have wardrobes, what will the rest of the Moschino clients do? When Mr. Scott runs out of sight gags and asinine themes what will happen? His only bright spots seem to be when he mines, read copies, the archives which can be very tiresome for those who have more than 20 minutes resumes. One has to wonder who will actually pay good money to wear “doll” clothes. And not to mention the exact Ungaro knock offs... shameful

Fendi: has always been this enigma to me as Karl uses it as some kind of design laboratory for himself and his ever percolating imagination. It is one of those collections that runs hot and cold and most realize that the house/ brand is built on furs and handbags and not apparel. There has never been any consistency here BUT when it is good or running hot, it is really good and “scalding.” The interesting thing is that recently the collection has been looking good in a very off the beaten track kind of way and due to Karl’s endless imagination, there is a lot to see if you can filter out the so called” bad apple.” My thoughts here are that Fendi is rarely about or specific look or direction.

Dsquared²: usually they are one of my whipping posts and this season is actually more of the same. What is so troublesome to me is that the boys really do have talent but it is obscured by all the “look at me look at me” antics that have become their shows. When the Catens do presentation rather than shows, the clothes are usually shocking in their polish and style and then come the circus like theatrics of the shows. Too bad they can’t consistently shows clothes that befit the brand rather than all the peripheral shock jock styling to garner attention.

Prada: there is very little one can say about the brand and its mistress. She is the queen of ugly clothes and is proud of it. To me she is a marketing sham that thinks her words are pearls of wisdom and can explain away the heinous rags she offers season and after season. No matter what, she lives up to her words about never wanting to make a woman look beautiful… well guess what... one more time she succeeds but alas this time the clothes are just deadly boring  rather than the usual spectacle she creates with her absurd deliberately awkward styling which garners editorial praise and coverage. One can only imagine how much the brand gives away to insure such notice!

BRIONI .. CAVALLI.. Dsquared² .. SPRING 2015 men's

Can we talk here? Rather than trash these collections for the obvious reasons, let me make this brief and to the point... WTF are these people thinking?

BRIONI... Long known as one of the great staples of the upper crust of men’s suitings has recently decided it needed to modernize its look as have so many others of the heritage brand variety. This is not to say they gave up their roots, it is to say they now have a so called more fashionable face to present or for that matter, a reason to present! Supposedly, its new creative director has his roots in Savile row tailoring but according to my eye he seems much more attuned and rooted to men’s contemporary sportswear. So the conundrum occurs here. .. Does the world of men’s fashion need a stratospherically expensive collection that looks like a rich man’s Original Penguin? Nuff said … let’s move on

ROBERTO CAVALLI... no question this man is smoking something but what strikes me is he seems to be doing Versace better than Donatellamommamia. Well, not really, but surely could be and had the show been more intelligently styled rather than adhering to the more is better school of design, this season might have been a winner.. Well, at least for a very fractional segment of the fashion population. Signor might have exercised a wee bit of restraint and offered some solid pants/ shorts as well just a more standard silhouette. He also might not have agreed with his stylist and forgone the scarf wrapped waists. Lastly he might have suggested that his models not look embarrassed or ashamed of wearing these get ups... a smile might have helped and gone a long way. Why did these clothes remind of The Rock?

Dsquared² … well I am sorry to see that the twins have not thrown in the towel on their circus of fashion. I was sort of hoping that whatever possessed them when designing the women’s resort collection had taken  over their collective minds for Spring men’s, but alas NOT! This is just one more season of clothes, just clothes and one more spectacle of a show that might hopefully detract from the non-importance of the collection. It is sad that these 2 cannot seem to figure out a way to stand out rather than blend in to the sea of sameness. I mean how many ridiculously expensive tricked out pairs of jeans does one fashion victim need? It is all about bells and whistles and maybe some smoke and mirrors but the end game is the same... so what! Again? and guys.. camo is dead!.. at least the way you showed it. And jeez louise.. Stephen Sprouse?? Day glow??

Dsquared².. resort 2015

From first glance it is not rocket science to see that the twins have plucked one of fashion’s most reliable and legendary icons as their muse and reference point for this collection. I speak of Diana Vreeland, the first lady of fashion.

What is so disturbing about the Catens is that they can’t seem to figure out who they are. They have these extreme mood swings which span from a teeny bopper Hollywood street walker to doyennes of fashion. What I find so amazing is that as much as they want to be showmen, hip and  groovy, they  are just provocateurs with all their over the top bells and whistles but their shining moments occur when they do beautiful feminine,  and dare I say it, chic stylish clothes.

Funny how life works, you spend all these seasons promoting this 3 rings circus of a collection and the most beautiful collection is the one that references a lady who was anything but trendy and always stylishly chic. It is almost as if Dsquared² and Vreeland in the same sentence created an oxymoron.

There is no doubt that the Vreeland style and swagger is pervasive but there is also this YSL attitude coupled with something very decadently Helmut Newton about it all. The big question is whether or not this portends the future or is this one more of their one hit wonders? The collection is very old school and yet it retains a modernity to it and I think that the Catens should wear that as a medal. There is always a polish and soigne moment that shows up occasionally in their collections but rarely is it so all-encompassing and it is very flattering to the clothes and the designers. 

Impressed? … Yes. Surprised? … Yes. Hopeful? … Yes.  My gut tells me this is but a fleeting fashion moment that should be repeated but won’t be as the twins are far too restless and accustomed to thinking they ride the crest of the fashion wave and producing a collection that that might actually sell and be worn is beyond their scope of reality. Tis a pity!