Milan Fashion Week

Today Italy is amongst Paris, New York and London as the fashion industry’s top four global cities, as stated by Steele, (2003).

Fig.1. Dolce & Gabbana Fall Winter 2018/19 Women’s Fashion Show.

It was during 1952 that formal links between the Italian fashion and textiles industries and internal Italian sponsorships from textile manufactures were made (White, 2000). The “birth” of Italian Fashion was at the Sala Bianca in Florence in 1951 with Giovan Battista Giorgini organizing the show (Steele, 2003). Rome soon became the center of the couture or ‘alta moda’ in Italy due to the designers’ preference, but despite Florence’s beautiful setting, it was in 1958 that Milan Fashion Week was founded.

 

 

 

 

Fig.2. The History of Fashion Week. (2018)

The semiannual Milan fashion event was pioneered by The National Chamber of Italian Fashion; a non-profit organization (Nazionale della Moda Italiana, 2016). The event takes place in the heart of the city with public show viewings held in the 15^thcentury Piazza Duomo, Castello Sforzesco courtyard as revealed by Fashion Week Online (2018).

Fig.3. Valentino fashion show at Salla Bianca, Palazzo Pitti, Firenze; Milan Fashion Week 1964.

Fig.4. Models in Florence, February 12^th 1951.

Global fashion weeks are a means for publicity and each city has individual characteristics that sets them apart from one another (Lea-Greenwood, 2012). Italy produce high quality garments at high speed that are difficult to reproduce and this design heritage, creativity, culture and tradition is prominent at Milan fashion week (Zargani (2013). Whilst Paris is praised for its haute couture; New York for its urban apparel and sportswear and London for its innovative vitality (Gilbert and Breward, 2003).

Fig.5. Vogue, (2017) Anna Wintour Reflects on Milan Fashion Week Spring 2018 | Vogue.

Milan is the frontrunner in prêt-à-porter fashion (Steele, 2013) with a focus on creating elegant evening gowns with luxury fabrics. White (2000) described them as simple, elegant and seasonally stylish in shape and this tradition of decadence in Milan is still evident when analyzing the collections during fashion week. Although it could be argued that designers such as Dolce and Gabbana create a juxtaposition between Italian tradition and innovation as seen (Fig. 6) with the use of drones flying down the runway with handbags.

 

Fig.6. Handbags on flew down the runway by drones at the Dolce and Gabbana show. Vogue (2018)

 “Decadence is what goes down well in Paris. Milan is the present and the future.”

– Modenese, B (2003) Fashion, Italian Style. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.

Fig.7. The Dolce and Gabbana show AW18 at Milan Fashion Week.

Italy’s most influential designers adorn Milan Fashion Week and these entrepreneur-designers unlike the dressmakers who preceded them (Segre Reinach, 2006) bring glamour, sophistication and contemporary influences to the catwalk. The likes of Dolce and Gabbana, Armani, Valentino and Versace in particular, convey modernity through elegant designs (Turner, 1997).

 

 

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References

Abrams, S (2018) History and Facts About Milan Fashion Week. [Online] Available at: http://fashionweekonline.com/history-facts-milan-fashion-week [Accessed: 5 March 2018].

Camera Nazionale Della Moda Italiana, (2016) Camera Nazionale Della Moda Italiana [Online] Available at: http://www.cameramoda.it/en/associazione/cosa-e-la-cnmi/ [Accessed: 8 March 2018].

Fashion Week Online, (2018) History of Fashion Week. [Online] Available at: http://fashionweekonline.com/history-of-fashion-week [Accessed: 5 March 2018].

FF Channel, (2017) Versace | Spring Summer 2018 Full Fashion Show | Exclusive. [YouTube]. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wIn5vVwLeU [Accessed: 2 March 2018].

Gilbert, D and Breward, C. (2003) Fashion and the city. Social interaction and creativity in London and Milan In: D’Ovidio, M and Vicari Haddock, S (2010) (eds) Fashion and the City. University of Milan – Bicocca.  p.117.

Gilbert, D. & Breward, C. (2006) Milan The City of prêt-à-porter in a World of Fast Fashion. In: Segre Reinach, S. (eds.) Fashion’s World Cities. Oxford: Berg. pp.123-124

Lea-Greenwood, G (2012) Fashion Marketing Communications. 1^st ed. Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell.

Steele, V. (2003) Fashion, Italian Style. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.

Turner, L. (1997) Gianni Versace Fashion’s latest Emperor. London: Chameleon Books.

Vogue, (2017) Anna Wintour Reflects on Milan Fashion Week Spring 2018 | Vogue. [YouTube]. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_hDgH_KoSI [Accessed: 2 March 2018].

Vogue, (2018) What Happened at MFW [Online]. Available at: http://www.vogue.co.uk/gallery/whats-happening-at-milan-fashion-week-aw18 [Accessed: 6 March 2018].

White, N. (2000) Reconstructing Italian fashion: America and the development of the Italian fashion industry. Oxford & New York: Berg.

Zargani, L. (2013) The Intangible Quality: Makers strive to protect what “Made in Italy” represents to the rest of the world. WWD: Women’s Wear Daily; Los Angeles, Vol. 205. (Issue 38), p.2.

 

Images

FIG.1
Dolce & Gabbana (2018) Dolce & Gabbana Fall Winter 2018/19 Women’s Fashion Show. [YouTube]. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sojFG6a0PE0 [Accessed 30 March 2018].

FIG.2.
Fashion Week Online, (2018) History of Fashion Week [Online Image]. Available at: http://fashionweekonline.com/history-of-fashion-week [Accessed: 6 March 2018].

FIG.3.
The Red List (2018) Valentino (1932) [Online Image]. Available at: https://theredlist.com/wiki-2-23-1249-1257-view-1960s-profile-valentino-3.html#photo [Accessed 12 March 2018].

FIG.4.
Secret Italy (2015) Italian Catwalks: From the First to the Last Fashion Show [Online Image]. Available at: http://www.secretitaly.it/italian-catwalks-from-the-first-to-the-last-fashion-show/  [Accessed 12 March 2018]

FIG.5.
Vogue videos (2018) Vogue’s Anna Wintour On the Best Moments of Milan Fashion Week [Online Video] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lHCRQPxTpY [Accessed 12 March 2018].

FIG.6 & 7
Vogue, (2018) What Happened at MFW [Online Image]. Available at: http://www.vogue.co.uk/gallery/whats-happening-at-milan-fashion-week-aw18 [Accessed: 6 March 2018].