On the last day of the menswear shows in Milan, designer Giorgio Armani made a bit of a statement with his show notes. Instead of spelling out his inspirations, color palette, and textile choices there was just one line of text inside the Armani folder placed on each seat. "Echoes of Armani" was scrawled across the thick paper stock.
But on the catwalk there was no sense that this show was anything less then a fully realized 100% Armani collection. The designer produced a line of pieces that at its heart was a celebration of easy elegance.
Unstructured, forgiving, and comfortable were the underlying sentiments of the show. Trench coats were cut wide and left uncinched at the waist. Pleat front trousers came in a roomy full cut or gently tapered to a cuff. Business shirts made way for easy v-neck jersey tops and jackets came unlined and laid back or in a mailable knit. All of it in Armani's beloved understated shades of blue, grey, black and white. With just a pop or vibrant red in two back to back boxy striped jackets.
This collection wasn't a hollow reverberation of Armani's illustrious fashion past. Instead it was one more ripple in the designers endless and indelible imprint on men's fashion.