Inclusivity — you’ve got to love it. Or do you? As au courant and lofty the goal, it’s one not without pitfalls, certainly when applied to the runway. There, inclusivity can look a lot like all-over-the-place. In his show notes, Giorgio Armani wrote that he approached his fall collection “inspired by many cultures as an ode to coexistence as opposed to exclusion.” Alas, through a long lineup — 96 looks, including a smattering of men’s — the coexistence proved far from seamless.
That the collection meandered as it did surprised, since Armani has long integrated elements of diverse cultures into his work. He opened with relative calm: pale grays and pinks for unconstructed outerwear — ponchos, cocoon coats, flyaway jackets — over pants and shorts. Then, he was off and running as a litany of house codes paraded past. That meant numerous jacket variations; several pant cuts, some tricky, some not; embellished gowns; fabrics with intense surface textures from quilting to Lurex to what appeared to be abstract warp prints. And yes, hats, fanciful, furry pastels with far-distant retro pomp. Cromwell might have worn one, had he been more fun.
Armani crossed it all with non-specific cultural references, integrating the two with experimental zeal. That laudable approach led him to mix in a few doozies: a pair of Elizabethan bloomers; a natty jacket over a sort-of-sarong skirt draped, pulled and knotted over red, ribbon-laced boots; shaggy blue and green Christmas tinsel ponchos over iridescent abstract-patterned skirts. And was that short black-and-blue coat inset with red velvet banding a Tyrolean moment, or had the mind wandered off, to somewhere high on a hill with a lonely goatherd?
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Of course, there were some pretty clothes: The opening series of separates had soothing appeal, and an ombréd mohair coat projected just the right touch of arty. While Armani is a master of evening drama, here, his loveliest gown was relatively discreet, a shadow-striped beauty with feathers at the hem. He closed, as he often does, by contrasting his primary point with a power classic, the stately tuxedo, this one embroidered for alluring sparkle. It dazzled indeed. But in the end, Armani’s globe-spanning left one feeling lost.