Scene setting: The mood in Milan is one of revival. Ememegildo Zegna hosted its show in an area outside of Milan that is about to undergo intense renovation; Marni proffered creative conservation as a global initiative. On the eve of their fifth anniversary, Simone Rizzo and Loris Messina unveiled plans for a large scale regeneration project in partnership with The City of Milan. Their S/S 20 show was staged underneath a giant bridge in the middle of a park in the Rubattino neighbourhood. They found the space a year ago and immediately knew they wanted to work on a substantial cultural project as the backbone to their ideas. ‘Finally we can do something strong in Milan! It’s pretty hard to do something different here,’ Rizzo said. They have christened the space ‘Bianco Sunnei’ – 4000 square metres, freshly painted white, which will host multidisciplinary events, performances and happenings. ‘We wanted to do something that changes the city, something that we see happening in London and Paris but is often so hard to do Milan.’
Mood board: Since the label’s inception the pair have cultivated a creative cool with their generous proportions and spongy, sculptural elegance. For S/S 20 they honed their signature look. Wide cargo pants came with giant 3D zip pockets cropped to the ankle and operatic volumes on tabards worn over shirts. Layering was a key theme and attitude too; stripes in green and yellow dashed across the body. Colours ran from whites into camel, yellow, ending on a prism of greens and blues. ‘When we arrived into this space a year ago, we started thinking about the collection. That’s why it goes from white to dark – it’s really a state of mind,’ Messina said. They’ve finessed their unique brand of skewed simplicity.
Best in show: S/S 20 included a 7 piece all-white capsule with fabrics from historic textile mill Albiate 1830, which also developed a special pinstripe cotton poplin. New to the range was rubberised jewellery for men and women. Knitwear used 3D woven nylon yarns to create a loofah texture and sci-fi sheerness. Sunnei is one of Milan’s brightest, buzziest labels. ‘A lot of people don’t really understand what we are doing, but we are now doing something for the city. We have had such a difficult six months, so many people telling us to do different things, but we are not just clothes or seasonal things,’ Rizzo said. ‘We are more than this. This is just the first of a series of bigger things. We hope this will be something of a rebirth of Milan.’
