Filippo Grazioli went crafty, artsy, and (why not?) a bit crazy for spring. He fully unleashed his inner eccentric on the runway, fearlessly and almost obsessively exploring Missoni’s zigzag pattern with an avant-garde verve that felt instinctive and urgent.
Backstage before the show, he explained that he wanted to reenergize Missoni’s bold artistic spirit and the playfulness of its beginnings, which he believed had been left dormant and overlooked. He emphasized that the zigzag motif has deep ancestral cultural origins, which he aimed to honor through the collection with a primal, elemental rhythm. The designer delved into the archives and unearthed a vibrant striped collection with a totemic vibe, originally created in 1990 to celebrate the World Cup, that he reprised to further raise the chromatic spark.
Ruth Asawa, an American artist known for her modernist looped-wire organic sculptures, served as the inspiration for Grazioli’s tour de force of revitalizing the zigzag motif. He translated it into a multitude of spiky 3D, triangular-shaped knitted forms that alternately undulated, protruded, or unfolded in accordion-pleated spirals or tremulous mille-feuilles on tubular tops, minidresses, and leggings, generating whirlwinds of kinetic energy. Other equally spectacular specimens included dresses made from knotted ribbons, tunics covered in round sequins as big as CDs, and clingy jacquard sheaths adorned with fringes haphazardly placed like colorful brushstrokes. Kudos to Missoni’s know-how for pushing its knitwear expertise to such remarkable expressive limits.
What made the collection both punchy and strangely captivating was Grazioli’s unwavering focus. Though it may have appeared excessive, it was crafted with such single-minded conviction that it radiated a sense of joyful, admirable defiance. It delivered electrifying mixed signals and jolts of energy that kept the audience far from indifferent or, worse, asleep. That’s already a rather impressive accomplishment.
