By her own admission, exhibition venues have always influenced Marine Serre's collections.
For spring, she chose not only Florence, as a guest of Pitti Uomo, but also the Villa di Maiano, a 15th-century hilltop estate surrounded by lush gardens and a stunning view of the city.
The refined charm of the place, which she says is reminiscent of the set of the movie “The Godfather,” made the French street favorite think of haute couture, an overall polished appearance and perhaps a little too literally in the Italian elegance.
Although it was his first independent menswear exhibition (one of the reasons he accepted the invitation to the trade show), there was no shortage of va-va-voom pieces for women, from the opening look, which combined a top made of waterfall vintage jewelry and a voluminous crinoline skirt, to the barely there lilac silk dress that followed.
Men hit the runway in severe, buttoned, double-breasted elongated suits and shiny leather ensembles touched up with the brand's signature crescent moon pattern. Tailored silhouettes that included vermilion red suits paired with a black shirt evoked the style of 1970s German group Kraftwerk.
The final chapter of the show, all white looks made and patched together from recycled linens and lace, revolved around the designer's penchant for culturally rich designs. Here was a message of unity and peace. “Sempre legati” or “Forever bonded” was the title of the program.
