edited by Alessandra Savino
If Aristotle stated that <>, 'a few' millennia later, the world of fashion has made good use of its maxim. Among the summer 2024 fashion trends there is, in fact, one in particular that winks at innovation through the use of studied materials. Already in 2021, Chiara Ferragnion the occasion of the GQ Awards, arrived in Berlin to collect the 'Woman of the Year' award, sporting a kind of golden armour. Unmistakable is Elsa Schiapparelli's signature on the top-sculpture gold which the well-known entrepreneur and influencer paired with black oversized mannish trousers for the occasion. A combination that perfectly emphasised the top of the outfit, making the material creation of the visionary maison the protagonist. Recalling the bust of a statue, the top worn by Ferragni, handcrafted and composed of parts of 24k gold leaf, outlined and enhanced the nudity of the female breast. On the other hand, forging golden armour with the intention of exploring the human anatomy has always been the mission of the surrealist designer, a couturier of exaggeration who has often drawn on the imagery of Salvador Dali.
Although it was, in recent times, Daniel Roseberry, creative director of the fashion house that bears the name of the revolutionary designer, to experiment with playing with materials on women's bodies, this is a trend that already appeared at the beginning of the current millennium. It was 2002 when, Yves Saint Laurent, in the autumn-winter collection fashion show pays homage to the armour of Ancient Greece with liquid bodices. It was actually an intuition that the French designer had back in 1969: the war in Vietnam was inflaming the spirits of the most rebellious university students, who occupied classrooms and corridors. This particular geopolitical situation led Yves Saint Laurent to hire sculptor Claude Lalanne to bring one of his most innovative ideas to life.
The image of soldiers perpetually covered in armour was, therefore, the inspiration behind a bodice sculpted to the measurements of the bust of Veruschkamodel and muse of the couturier.
Among those who have continued the French designer's creative research is certainly Issey Miyakewho, in the 1980s, made an electric blue acrylic bodice modelled on Grace Jones' body. In the following decades were, Thierry Mugler, Alexander McQueen and Tom Ford to follow in the same footsteps by bringing sculptural material tops to the catwalk. If theirs was a hedonistic vision that placed a perfectly proportioned, dominating and combative woman at the centre, quite different is the idea behind the bodices designed by Sinéad O'Dwyer.
The Irish designer emphasises imperfect female bodies by working with synthetic materials such as silicone.
Returning, in 2021, to an exaltation of the warrior woman, however, is Balmain with a sculptural top embellished with diamond inlaysseen wearing it on Elle Fanning at the InStyle Awards that year. Directed by Olivier Rousteingthe Parisian fashion house likes to design architectural garments rich in bold material elements. And, in view of the imminent summer, several brands have re-proposed the trend with personal reinterpretations; interesting, in this regard, is the gold and silver top signed by Loewe.
Also not missing from the roll-call Simone Rocha and Copernifor whom experimentation with the use of novel materials is always just around the corner. Even Valentino did not remain 'immune' to the fashion of the moment and chose to adorn one of his iconic tops with a sculptural bow. The world of fashion design is thus preparing for a summer of sculpted abs, not on bodies on the beach, but on refined material casts,
must-haves of the trendiest wardrobes.
