Milan Fashion Week announces record edition

By

Dominique Muret

Published
Feb 23, 2016

A grand edition of the Milan Fashion Week is in sight, after those held in New York and London. The Fashion Week dedicated to womenswear collections for Autumn/Winter 2016-17 will take over the Lombardy capital from 24th to 29th February, featuring the record number of 182 collections, between shows and presentations.

The President of the Italian Fashion Chamber (CNMI), Carlo Capasa, stated that "we haven't had such a high number of participants since 2009."

In total the week will feature 182 collections, with 73 official shows (plus several shows outside of the main calendar, including Dolce & Gabbana on Sunday 28th February, Kristina Ti and Maryling), and 99 presentations, compared to 170 collections with 70 official shows and 88 presentations last September. In addition to all this, there will be an abundance of parallel initiatives: parties, store inaugurations, exhibitions and other special events.

This edition of the Milan fashion marathon will be opened for the first time by the brand of Russian designer Grinko, and will feature a plethora of novelties and interesting projects. All eyes will be notably glued to the Diesel Black Gold show: the upmarket brand of jeans manufacturer Diesel, led by Andreas Melbostad, will show its womenswear collection for the first time in Milan, on Friday 26th February, after choosing New York for the last few years.

Another novelty will be the show by Japanese designer Atsushi Nakashima, scheduled for 26th February as part of the DHL Exported programme. The designer worked for Jean Paul Gaultier after earning a diploma at the Fashion College in Nagoya, Japan, in 2001. He launched his own ready-to-wear brand in 2011, showing for the first time in Tokyo in February 2012. He has also collaborated with Jil Sander.

Another Japanese designer debuting at the Milan week, on 27th February, will be Mitsuru Nishizaki, who created the Ujoh label in 2009 and has been invited to show at the Armani/Teatro. This talented young designer caught the eye in 2015, as one of the finalists at the 'Who's on Next' trade show in Dubai. He will showcase items notable for their slick design, combining rich fabrics, decisive cuts and minimalism.

The Fashion Week will close with an event dedicated to sustainable development. It will be the opportunity to present a document put together by the Italian fashion institutions, explaining which chemical substances can or cannot be used in apparel, accessories and the textile industry in general, in which proportion they can be used and, especially, how they can be transformed.