For all the ruffles, lace and neat Sixties shifts that characterize Giambattista Valli’s Giamba line, it’s always had a naughty side. For fall, he indulged his rebellious streak more than ever, borrowing Nan Goldin’s crew of wayward but stylish muses during the 1980s, including Cookie Mueller and Greer Lankton.
“I started from a moment when uptown and downtown were really two separate worlds,” said Valli backstage. His collection merged the two realms, though clearly he sided with a downtown spirit. The show opened with an ivory lace babydoll with a harnesslike black lace and leather bodice. A black leather bustier bra and boy shorts taunted from under a bourgeois polka-dot blouson dress that was completely sheer except for its sleeves. The contradiction between sweet and nasty was a bit formulaic, but Valli pushed himself to explore new proportions and a street attitude. An oversize zebra-patterned cardigan over a graffitied miniskirt and long, gothic black tulle dress worked well. Aggressive outerwear over hoodies and creeper sneakers felt a bit forced, but Valli gets credit for going outside his comfort zone.