FORM and texture in equal measures appear to be the main focus of the latest Versace Spring/Summer 2009 collection for women.
Donatella Versace, vice president and creative director of the Italian luxury house, succeeds again in turning away from the over-the-top legacy of the label with another exciting collection that pays a lot of attention to strong detailing and speaks fondly from the heart of the Medusa (the iconic symbol of Versace).
On the one hand, the new sexy “box shape” for dresses creates an optical illusion of a slimmer waist together with high-waisted trousers cropped beneath the knee; on the other, exotic skin textures such as crocodile and python effects are interestingly translated onto silk, organza and high-tech cotton while liquid silk satin and chiffon continue to flaunt the sexy cocktail dresses and eveningwear.
The show was defiantly upbeat with lots of structure and architectural shapes in the designs.
Yet they were cheerful, glitzy and positive with fluorescent yellow, pink, blue, gold, black and white which is, in the words of Donatella, “what fashion moments now need to be like”.
The geometry of the silhouettes in the collection is very much in tune with the season’s obsession with couture-like draping, bending, folding and twisting fabrics in the most innovative ways on the female body.
Emphasis on the careful construction of shapes and structure continued from the last Autumn/Winter collection in defining tailored womanly daywear, structural 80s inspired “lampshade” skirts, super short above-the-knee dresses and stunning eveningwear with some of the most creative zip embellishments and folding skills seen this season.
“The woman I have in mind when designing,” says Donatella, “is one whose individuality and inner confidence shines on the outside. The contemporary woman is not afraid to be a woman. She can still be powerful by maintaining her femininity and sensuality”.
Donatella is like that woman herself and knows how to keep her loyal customers happy this season by taking the key Versace materials and details and reworking them into a major theme running throughout the collection.
The edgy metallic zipper, once a preserve of punk culture, is elevated from its functional purpose of fastening to a foremost detailing of choice this season.
It became the collection’s signature design feature that was sewn onto dresses and twirled in many sculptural ways in the form of heart shapes and other geometric shapes, and within the draping of fabric.
The resulting zipped hearts were an outstanding and unexpected decoration that sweetly adorn the “boxy” dresses as well as softer organza tops and some evening numbers.
By sheer coincidence, they befit the Versace One Fashion show and charity gala showcasing this Spring/Summer collection in Beijing last year in aid of the Jet Li One Foundation, which Donatella has committed to a year-long partnership with all her heart.
The zip with its exposed metallic teeth was also used as an effective shiny piping that outlined the contours of the body of some dresses with open seams, melding into an edgy yet purposeful detailing of the design, and accentuated folded pleats on a blue evening dress as well as the swirling ruffles of a canary yellow cocktail dress.
The design team was so obsessed with the decorative nature of these exposed teeth that an exaggerated mocked version of it was created out of silk and glistening fabric.
Seen on dresses, leather jackets and accessories, the unusual detailing strangely lends an abstract touch to this upbeat collection which is also teemed with exotic skin textures on fabrics.
Crocodile skin and python are fast becoming the precious leather of choice for makers of luxury goods and Versace is adopting this luxury by mocking them onto fabrics through high-tech means to complement the construction of their fashion pieces.
For example, jacquards are used to create a crocodile-effect on cottons and organza while a python texture is created by fusion of two paper-like fabrics.
Silk fused with paper resembles anaconda, and there is even an organza that looks like python as a result of an enzyme-based finishing treatment.
A gleaming gold crocodile skin structured jacket with a nipped waist looked almost armoury when matched with high-waist trousers that are cropped tightly at the knee while a white version with the exotic skin texture adds luxury to tailored daywear for the Versace woman.
The paper-like fabric with the snake-skin texture is more accessible than genuine skin and worked beautifully on the structured silhouettes intended for this Spring/Summer collection.
In a season when summer prints are much desired, Donatella celebrated 30 years of Versace by reinterpreting the iconic symbol of the House, the Medusa head, through a collaboration with fashion illustrator Julie Verhoeven.
The result was a series of multi-coloured prints featuring the artist’s signature wide-eyed girl and Medusa intermixed with drawings of starfish, shells, fishes and jewellery splashed on swimsuits, short dresses, billowing long dresses and handbags that will sort out the resort dressing in the coming summer months.
As always, the accompanying accessories are equally exciting with handbags and shoes covered with gold leafing, micro studs, zips, engraved metals, faceted plexi-glass hearts and crystal embellished on luxurious nappa leathers, crocodile and pearlised python in a fresh combination of silk white, lemon, pink and wisteria.
Donatella has firmly come into her own since taking over from her brother Gianni in 1997 with an upbeat collection that does not need much explaining except for an intriguing motif of the heart popping throughout the collection.
