Prada’s collection afforded a breathtakingly beautiful glimpse into this designer’s well-researched and pitch-perfect take on fairy-tale chic. Late sixties and early seventies silhouettes were cleverly combined with wild rainforest-greens and swirling marble-purples in a lusciously put-together ‘garden of the senses’. Bravo Prada! I’m always pleasantly surprised when big-gun labels, especially the Italian variety, bring fashion back to its roots; sketchbook work and visual research worked through and translated into garments with depth and character that appeal to buyers’ individuality.

Dolce and Gabbana’s floral escapade was less successful. It’s a testament to fashion’s transformation into the ubiquitous global operation it has become when substance so transparently falls victim to the vagaries of the trend-mentality. That’s not to say that D&G aren’t able to deliver. Perhaps a departure from their staple of sexy showy numbers as seen in their dire painted-on blooms of this season should receive more care and attention when in the planning stages. They should have done their homework and realised that the abstract expressionist look only works when you’re a real artist and not when you decide to hijack it for the sole purpose of jazzing up your otherwise conservative aesthetic.

Roberto Cavalli followed suit with an equally unimaginative stroll through an orchid wonderland of conveniently-positioned blooms. As I attempted to be swept away by the potent colours of this otherwise perfectly likeable flower my mind couldn’t help but be swamped by images of models oozing super-sexy appeal. While the clothes possessed an air of femininity aided by the use of billowing chiffons, upon closer inspection I realised that Cavalli and his team of design aficionados had merely floraled-up a select-patch of his perpetually sexy design philosophy.

Bringing a seventies feel to the runway in Milan was Missoni. Imagination and skill were much in evidence in the placement, scale and pattern-play of this designer’s floral proposition. A clear highlight was the use of bold retro prints that playfully shifted in size from model to model cleverly emphasising the drape and movement in each piece. Unlike Cavalli’s somewhat clichéd take on all things floral Missoni used their cache of flowers more dynamically, eking out fresh relationships between print, silhouette and wearability. These elements were given equal status in what equated to more of a ‘painting-on –canvas’ exercise than a ‘put-some-flowers-in-a-vase’ equation.

One of the most difficult challenges to overcome in the design process is to be able to translate your ideas on to paper or sketchbook. Taking your ideas out of your head and putting them onto paper can be a wonderfully exciting and enlightening experience.  I continue to resist the easy appeal of mass-market design strategies and trend-engineering and look forward to a future of fresh and real design that does justice to the talented and as-yet anonymous artist-designer of the no-so-not-so-distant-future.

By Ismail Erbil

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