Giorgio Armani Men’s Spring 2022 and Privé Shows to Be Staged With Public
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MILAN — Some form of normalcy is expected to return to Milan Men’s Fashion Week, scheduled for June 18 to 22.
Although the calendar has not been released yet, while Italy gradually eases restrictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, Giorgio Armani has revealed that his signature brand’s spring 2022 show for men will be held in front of a live audience on June 21.
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It will take place in the courtyard of Via Borgonuovo 21, the building where the designer used to stage his shows before erecting the Teatro in 2001, which has since become the traditional site for his fashion events. The Teatro was designed by Japanese architect Tadao Ando in Via Bergognone, in a former Nestlé industrial area.
Also returning live, the Armani Privé couture show will be staged in Paris on July 6 at the headquarters of the Italian Embassy.
“I think the time has come to return to show in front of a live public because I think fashion only in a virtual format has no future,” Armani told WWD. “A fashion show is a tool we cannot do without because of its format, energy and effectiveness. It’s important to restore the physical shows and they can then be translated in digital experiences for a global audience. For my part, the goal is once again to send a positive signal of restart and support for Milan, my city, which has long been an undisputed capital of fashion.”
Asked about the choice of the location in Milan, Armani said that it is “especially significant.” The designer observed that he “wanted a venue that would be representative — a return to the origins and essence of fashion, which used to be proximity and intimacy, too. For the future, I imagine events that are more contained but more exciting.”
The courtyard, being outdoors, “offers more safety, but what I believe really counts is the intimacy of the location,” Armani explained.
The company also said “the return to live attendance has been decided following the current general improvement in public health with relation to the pandemic. The organization of the shows will comply with the distance and safety rules required by law and the actual holding of the events, in any case, will be conditional to the evolution of the pandemic.”
After an initial slowdown as in the rest of Europe, Italy has been speeding up its vaccination campaign and seeing the impact of the coronavirus pandemic gradually release its grip on the country. As of Wednesday, more than 15 percent of the population had been fully vaccinated.
In February last year, Armani was quick to react to the sudden spread of the pandemic in Italy, deciding to hold his signature brand’s fall 2020 show behind closed doors at the tail end of Milan Women’s Fashion Week.
As reported, Pitti Immagine has released its final schedule of physical trade shows taking place starting in late June. In particular, leading men’s wear trade show Pitti Uomo will be held IRL June 30 to July 2, one day less than usual in sync with exhibitors’ demand for maximum concentration and cost savings.
As a result, unlike previous seasons, Pitti Uomo will run after Milan and Paris Men’s Fashion Week, which is scheduled for June 22 to 27.
Armani skipped his regular show during Paris Couture Week in July last year and had initially planned to hold the Armani Privé show in his headquarters in Milan on Jan. 26. However, due to the spread of the pandemic in Italy at the time, it took place behind closed doors in the Italian city without an audience and was livestreamed on the brand’s social media channels as part of the Paris Couture Week calendar.
As France gradually lifts pandemic-related restrictions, the next edition of Paris Fashion Week for men’s wear has been cleared for physical shows and presentations, scheduled for June 22 to 27. Likewise, Haute Couture Week in Paris is to take place from July 5 to 8 in the French capital with physical shows and presentations.
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