Over the years Alessando Dell’Acqua has built his signature brand on his ability to rework season after season a mix of classic masculine and feminine sartorial staples, twisting their underlying constructs so that his creations introduced new, often unexpected, reinterpretations of those troupes.
This season however, his offering didn’t reach as far forward as usual. In fact his grunge-themed lineup looked more derivative of what has come before than anything with a view towards the future. The designer’s backward glance to Nineties style, and purportedly the 1930s, also hewed close to some recent distinctive offerings seen on the Saint Laurent catwalk. It was hard not to make that connection, particularly in the sunrise shaded palm tree motif designs Dell’Acqua showed, even if they were some of the strongest pieces in this collection.
Also good were the plaid lumberjack mohair sweaters, their fuzzy finish smartly softening this traditionally masculine item. The way the designer cut some of those pieces back on one sleeve to give the garments a schizophrenic appearance, half sports jersey and half sweater, and layering them with a hanging shirt underneath was a cool new take on the disheveled style.
The designer’s love of sparkly bits went chucking this season, embellishing everything from thick-soled shoes to hanging ribbon strips on gingham-patterned outerwear and delineating the edges on silk slip dresses. But even those additions couldn’t soften the hard edge displayed throughout.
It was good to see the designer continuing to push himself and the collection was a fully formed concept. Perhaps a touch more femininity might have been nice, but it’s doubtful these particular Dell’Acqua girls would have stood for such and idea.
