Dolce and Gabbana . Fall 2020 Ready-to-Wear - Milan Fashion Week.

Images from the designer and the public domain. Credited to the photographer/company where applicable: Gorunway.com .  

As the cronavirus (Covid-19) slams headlong into the tail end of Milan Fashion Week, with a mass outbreak occurring within the region of Lombardy (Milan being the capital), to which there has been a reported 152 people infected  with the virus and three have died, whilst patient zero remains illusive. The overall lesson here, particularly in retrospection of the concern that supply chains and the inflow and outflows of Eastern capital will begin to slow down, is whether or not the luxury fashion industry like other industries dependent on consumers from Asia, have a Plan B, other than the obvious scaling back of operations and cutting staff.  It remains to be seen on the impact this outbreak will have, but markets are still extremely overconfident that economic intervention via central banks will sooth over natures impartiality to the physicalism of our desires.

In the last day of showing of the Fall 2020 collection at Milan, in light of the virus spreading throughout the Lombardy Region, Fashion houses Giorgio Armani and Laura Biagiotti shut their doors to the public on the final day of MFW, with only certain VIP and press allowed.  Indicative of the disruption that the virus, from a public level, is causing within a non-Asian country.  Yet, the show must go on and Dolce and Gabbana have set down an impressive and very large ensemble for their Fall 2020 exposé. 

As noted with my reviews of similar collections from other designers, Demenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana have offered the lingerie outwear as the main play, with its alluring and sexy styles on display for their latest collection.  This is clearly one of the main trends for 2020, mixed in with the male suiting styles, that also appeared at the end of 2019.  The lingerie look appears to be freeing up some of the more rigid aspects of fashion, particularly for women's styles of the last five years. Experimenting with artisan techniques such as melding knitwear and crocheted styles into revealing forms.  It is fine tailoring at its best, especially when utilizing the tulle and sheer dynamics as a balance with its thicker layering.  However, both designers urged that they wanted to not overly create a specific appeal with their latest collection in representing the bare-it-all sheer styles, so there is an intermixed stylization of the seductive with the heavy set weaved coats and jackets, blazer and suiting arrays.  But, with over 120 pieces on show, there is, what feels like an overindulgence to corner the market with this new trend going into 2020.