Vivetta's fall/winter woman seems to have a treasure chest of heirlooms at home that includes antique brocade textiles, evening gowns from the '60s and surrealist artwork, all of which she has mixed-and-matched and altered to fit into her own eclectic taste.
On the packed runway of Armani Theater, looks ranged from smart pantsuits with interiors-effect wave prints to exuberant high-waisted jumpers and skirts that hinted a bit at Elizabethan-era pomp and circumstance.
With legendary Rolling Stones groupie Marianne Faithful as the collection’s muse, the sixties figured in strongly with flared skirts, capri pants and a color palette that was highlighted with lime green and royal blue.
The details of the collection were truly eye-catching: folk embroidery and accessories and booties adorned with red-nail painted finger and toe nails, as well as belts and collars sculpted into face profiles that seemed like they had been reproduced by seventies-era graffiti. The invitation, in fact, was accompanied by an embroidered button collar sewn in the form of delicate hands holding tiny flowers.
Designer Vivetta Ponti, the latest Next Generation designer tapped to show at Armani Theater, is hardly a stranger to the fashion world. The Milan-based Ponti started her label in 2008, after winning the "Who's Next" competition. She demonstrates a talent for prints due in part to her studies in pattern-making at CF Paullo in Milan and working for designers Roberto Cavalli and Daniele Alessandrini.
In fact, she already has a retail network in the best stores worldwide: Colette in Paris, Antonia in Milan, Nordstrom, Moda Operandi and Net-a-Porter, just to name a few.
With a great deal of experience under her belt, the push from Giorgio Armani will certainly catapult her into an even more global name.
