MILAN--Julian Zigerli's spring summer 2015 men's show unfolded in the humid courtyard of Milan's 15th century Palazzo Isimbardi, providing a striking Renaissance contrast to Zigerli's alternative-universe collections.
"Prints are constructed by hand in the physical environment with foam, instead of being manipulated on a computer screen," said the Swiss designer, who has enjoyed mass media attention since being selected a few seasons back by Giorgio Armani to show at the Armani Theater.
With his graphic prints, tailoring quirks like peekaboo blazer side slits and drooping arm bands and sandals with forest-fungi-looking shoe soles, Zigerli certainly churned out one of the most innovative, modernistic collections this week in Milan.
Things got a little wacky, however, when visibly hot, sweaty models came down the runway wearing trench coats and short suits crafted in opaque, synthetic-looking material that resembled recycled trash bags.
Zigerli, who said his collection depicted the life of an overworked salaryman who "emerges from his cubicle into a mad world full of endless possibility," is certainly a think-outside-the-box sort of guy...
Perhaps even in the way that Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi', for example, was seen by more traditional architects and 20th century naysayers when he unveiled the dinosaur-like curves of Barcelona's celebrated Casa Batllo'.
The sort of genius, maybe, only a mother can understand -- Zigerli's mom Renza sat proudly front row, beside Zigerli's father Stefano, who smiled as he snapped pictures with his smart phone.
"We are very proud," his beaming mother Renza (wearing one of the knit-paneled short-sleeved shirts seen on the runway) told NOWFASHION.
"[As a child] He always drew. He always liked a lot of colors and used colors that really resonate," she said.
