Alta Roma, Alta Moda?

After a long time I decided to comment the painful panorama of the Italian Alta Roma Alta Moda fashion week. I’m very sad to use these words, but seems that Rome can no longer count on the glories of the past and needs a deep restoration. How? Franca Sozzani, editor in chief of Vogue Italia, proposed an interesting idea in her blog by answering to questions of some readers: “Rome should become a leader in scouting for new designers all over the world”.

Now let’s go beyond the critics on the system and try to enjoy the shows. The great Fausto Sarli, who recently died, has been commemorated with a show in which white was the main color. Basic shapes with clean lines, were mixed with the richness of fabrics and decorative applications. The second outifit looks like a triumphant Venus born from the foam of the sea while landing on the shore.  In the third dress there is a veiled and chaste sensuality as in a female peacock wheel.

Gattinoni opted for volumetric and geometric constructions, the shoulder straps seem wings studded with a rain of precious black applications. Rami Al Ali imagines a wave of the sea coming down from the shoulder to the legs with lots of rhinestones applications that look like water splashes; while the little black dress is revisited as an evening gown with a stylized rose and tulle skirt for a “Swan Lake” effect.

Raffaella Curiel uses the italian lace tradition on a multi-layered dress and on jackets shaped like the corolla of a flower. The iconic Renato Balestra blue is declined on an evening gown featured by a slit pinned with a diamond brooch which reveals the shining white inner lining. Tony Ward proposes a mini dress with geometric shaped petals embedded in a romantic web made of lace.