Emporio Armani Stages a Supersized Show in a Busy Season for the House
It’s a big — and busy — season for Giorgio Armani, who reopened his freshly refurbished Emporio Armani store on Via Manzoni, and who’ll unveil a vast new building on Madison Avenue as he shows his signature collection in New York on Oct. 17.
It’s all taking place in his 90th birthday year, and he’s in the mood to celebrate. So it’s no wonder his Emporio Armani show was a primetime blockbuster, with scores of looks on the runway and guests — including actors, athletes, Olympic and Paralympic gold medalists from the 2024 Games — adding to the jubilant mood.
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The show space on Via Bergognone had been reconfigured to accommodate a large rectangular runway, and a supersized cinematic shot of model Bekah Jenkins, taken in 2000 by Tom Munro, served as the backdrop. The moody model, with her short, slicked-back 1920s hair, pale suit and tie, embodied the Emporio woman.
Even the bow at the end was big, with models dressed in a rainbow of summery shades crowding onto the runway behind Giorgio, and longstanding members of his design team. They included Leo Dell’Orco, the menswear designer, and Silvana Armani, head of womenswear. Usually, it’s just Giorgio, head-to-toe in navy blue, taking a bow with the models.
The coed collection was all-encompassing, with a full suite of day, evening and occasion looks, soft tailoring, and a host of sheer, iridescent and embroidered fabrics.
Soft tailoring came in the form of double- and single-breasted suits in ice white silk, or windowpane check, some of which were worn with tone-on-tone ties, just like the model in the Munro photo. There were looser, collarless jackets and tunic tops, too, layered over wide or narrow trousers, with or without prints.
Men’s suits had those strong Armani shoulders, and voluminous trousers tucked into handsome hiking boots, a nod to the Milanese who escape to the Alps on a Friday afternoon in winter, and early spring. Other, more casual suits came with belted jackets or double leather belts on the trousers.
Once they cast off their suits, the Emporio ladies go for comfort — and color. They donned striped, beachy A-line dresses, silky pajama suits, long iridescent skirts and breezy, colorful gowns with crisscross straps and sheer overlays, which played to the wider transparency trend that’s sweeping New York, London and Milan.
For evening, Armani kept things easy, dressing models in roomy white shirts and sequin-encrusted trousers cinched with wide black belts, all with a 1950s Hollywood feel.
There was a lot to take in, and the show could have been shorter and more streamlined. But Armani and his team are prolific and hard workers, so why not go big in a landmark year? Odds-on, he’ll go even bigger next month in the Big Apple.
Launch Gallery: Emporio Armani Spring 2025 Ready-To-Wear Collection
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