One way to approach being the new Design Director of a Historic and Storied fashion house is to embrace the history of the house while trying to delicately balance infusing your own aesthetic into the already well-established DNA of the brand and while remaining respectful of the heritage of the maison. Or... You could do like Massimo Giorgetti has done at Emilio Pucci, and run like mad through the house, sweeping out all that is known and recreating it in your own craven image. With a house like Pucci that has seen the likes of Christian Lacroix, Matthew Williamson and most recently, Peter Dundas... That might actually be the best way to make something of the house.
Firstly, Where Dundas had made the collection one of the most coveted, photographed, hyped and celebrity swathed brands known to the man, his approach had become exhaustingly predictable and not a little stale. It was as if the song on your iTunes was stuck on repeat. While Scintillating, it was also due for a Refresh... One might not have imagined this radical a refresh, yet it was still far more welcome than another Dundas Rich Hippy collection! Giorgetti wiped the slate not only Squeaky Clean, but threw the slate on the floor from the Penthouse balcony! What remained is in essence a Channeling Pucci into HIS aesthetic and not the other way round. It wasn't a totally convincing or harmonious coalescence, first collections rarely are, but it was certainly interesting, and above all, Refreshing!
What it did have, was that madcap, magpie charm that has been so spellbindingly championed by Alessandro Michele at Gucci, yet, since Giorgetti has been doing his thing, this exact aforementioned thing at that, before Michele was installed at the house of the Interlocking G's, Giorgetti might be seen as it's progenitor, although he does not push it to the hair raising extremes that Michele does, one could say they are spiritually related! The proof being, this debut Resort 2016 collection was nowhere near as eclectic and kooky as Michele's Gucci, but there are parallels. Giorgetti virtually totally eschewed the signature graphic prints of the house and only vaguely alluded to them in a couple of looks. What remained was a Fun, Mad, Esoteric collection filled with witty and gamine pieces for the new and old Pucci customer alike.
Maybe this isn't what the Dundas loyal Pucci girl is looking for, but the for the modern Quirky Fashionista, she'll find the printed Slip dress in shades of Pink, White and Black belted over an Amethyst blouse an easy transition from the past to the present, as well as a Lacquer Shiny dark Mineral Blue Patent coat. which was calling out to any woman, regardless of what designer her allegiance is to! Giorgetti did a fascinating Volte-face here and in some ways it worked fantastically, there were, naturally, some wrinkles that need to be pressed out, but it's looking good for the future of the house. It may not be the direction anyone was expecting, in fact, when Dundas took over from Williamson, it was quite the sea change in style at the label and it took a few beats for everyone to get on board, but on board they did get, and if Giorgetti does his thing right, they'll be on board for his new vision as well! The only thing that Giorgetti needs to keep in mind, even though a new broom sweeps clean, one is well armed to not completely dismantle or disregard the past, Pucci hasn't survived so long by not being cognizant of it's past glories. Giorgetti would do well to remember that!
That's All.
Bye4Now!
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