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Curiously, Emporio Armani Prepares for Combat (Or Maybe a Strike)
By: Godfrey Deeny
Photos by Gruber-FWD
Milan, Jun 18, 2002/FWD/ --- There was a curious fashion moment in Milan Wednesday, when
Giorgio Armani unveiled his Emporio collection, which was highly influenced by war imagery
and military themes.
The designer was upfront, in his program notes, about this collection's influences:
"French workers coming out of the factories at Billancourt; activists at of the Popular
Front; Russian miners in the thirties; and, American volunteers during the Second World War."
Leaving aside the fact that American soldiers were actually drafted in World War II, the
inspiration seemed a bizarre one, especially given the fact that practically every designer
has scrupulously avoided military imagery this season in Milan in the wake of 9/11.
Reworked flight jackets, leather barnstormer pants and combat boots with shin guards were
just some of the soldier-like looks that marched out on Armani's custom-built catwalk in his
new exhibition space in south Milan.
Moreover, there were so many workers on the Emporio runway this morning - sporting battered
leather jackets, patched railway men's coats and wool skullcaps - one wondered whether the
models had gone on strike.
That's not to suggest there weren't some great clothes. Armani got a burst of applause for
a pair of sweater-soft pinstripe suits with matching tight sweaters, which thousands of men
would love to wear.
And his double finale of black velvet pants with blood orange sweaters, followed by a score
of statuesque models in various black outfits, was brilliantly wrought.
Maybe Armani is on the search for heroes - one couldn't help thinking that he had filtered
something from the coverage of anti-terrorist troops in Afghanistan seen on CNN into the
collection - but his vision was definitely out of step with the current mood in Milan.
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