Emporio Armani presents first collection since founder's death

Italian fashion house Giorgio Armani on Sunday unveiled the last collection personally worked on by its late designer and founder, at Brera art museum in the heart of Milan.

Armani, known in the fashion world as King Giorgio, passed away earlier this month at the age of 91.

The show, conceived to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the fashion house, turned into a tribute to the late designer.

The event drew a host of celebrities including actors Richard Gere and Cate Blanchett and was held in the cloister of the Brera art museum, adorned with lanterns for the occasion.

Models walked under the porticoes in fluid, lightweight outfits, accompanied by live piano music performed by Italian composer Ludovico Einaudi.

The collection, featuring a colour palette that ranged from grey to deep blue to dark green, was titled Pantelleria, Milan, referencing two places dear to the designer.

Leo Dell’Orco, head of Men’s Style at Armani Group, and Silvana Armani, niece of late fashion designer Giorgio Armani, appear at the end of the show. REUTERS/Claudia Greco

“This collection, the last Giorgio Armani worked on personally, is in some ways a testament to style and the close of a cycle, so that new ones may begin,” the brand said in the press notes.

The show concluded with a solo walk by Agnese Zogla, one of the designer’s favourite models, who wore an elegant blue gown.

At the end of the catwalk, Armani’s niece Silvana and the designer’s life and business partner Leo Dell’Orco – respectively head of design for the women’s and men’s collections – came out to greet the audience and were met with lengthy applause.

“I’m… humbled that we were invited to come back to Milano to celebrate his excellency,” said director Spike Lee upon entering the show.

“Apart from being an incredible designer, he was a humanitarian. He was an incredible philanthropist,” said Blanchett.

Giorgio Armani’s catwalk show closed Milan Fashion Week, with fashionistas then heading to Paris for the next round of shows.

A few days earlier, Emporio Armani unveiled its first collection since the death of the fashion house’s founder and designer, with models paying tribute to the man known as King Giorgio with long applause during the final walk of the show.

No one came out for the usual designer’s bow, not even Silvana, who always worked alongside him in creating the womenswear collections.

Some in the audience had tearful eyes.

Armani, who died on September 4 aged 91, worked on the brand’s collection until the very end of his life, the company said earlier this month, when they confirmed the shows at the Milan fashion week.

Emporio Armani’s spring-summer collection, titled Returns, was dominated by neutral tones, airy garments and multicultural inspirations.

“The collection is born from the desire to capture the impulse and shifting sensations that accompany a return to the city, after a journey,” the brand said in notes for the press.