Ready-to-wear Emporio Armani Fall 2022
Following the shocking news of Russia's invasion of Ukraine this morning, you began to notice war symbols everywhere. Of course, the Emporio Armani collection was designed weeks ago, but its military elements—berets, combat boots, hussar jackets, belts buckled around suit waists—couldn't help but serve as eerie reminders of the reality unfolding not far from the bubble of Milan Fashion Week.
Because the fashion industry reflects the events of the world around it, there's a looming gloom in the air this season, with references to the ominous glamour of the Roaring Twenties manifesting on runways. You couldn't pin down a specific era at Emporio Armani, but the brand's checkerboard runway was filled with a powerful sense of dressing, as you mean it.
"I've been working as I've always done, keeping up with my inspirations and trying to reflect on how the world is changing, thinking of what I can do with my work to follow these changes," Giorgio Armani wrote in an email before the Russian invasion became public. His collection amplified the glitz, experimenting with the hallmarks of party wear and formalwear from a decidedly pop perspective.
His menswear tackled dandy dressing in three-piece suits with jazzy jacquard waistcoats, channeling a kind of amplified gangster look for the Emporio man. In pink and black rigid silk cocktail dresses, asymmetric Barbie-like halter tops, and plush pajamas that evoked a 1930s hostess-at-home dress code, his womenswear played with occasion-wear tropes.
"I believe we should dress up more in our everyday lives," Armani said. "I'm not interested in sluggishness." And we can always dress up a little more with that effortlessness that I've always admired. So it's not just about looking good, but it's also about taking care of what you wear."
He frequently ventured into uncharted territory. On an Emporio runway, daring propositions like a synthetic green color used across categories and thigh-high leather boots worn under shorts by both men and women were on display. There was an almost insistent, showy approach to dressing up that rhymed with the season's waves in his collection.
"I definitely believe we should dress up more in our everyday lives," Armani said. "I'm not interested in sluggishness." And we can always dress up a little more with that effortlessness that I've always admired. It is not just about looking good, but it's also about taking care of what you wear."
He frequently ventured into uncharted territory. On an Emporio runway, daring propositions like a synthetic green colour used across categories and thigh-high leather boots worn under shorts by both men and women were on display. In his collection, there was an almost insistent, showy approach to dressing up that rhymed with the season's waves.