As Lady Grantham can attest, sometimes there is nothing more appealing than British propriety, which seemed to be the reigning theme at this evening's
BAFTA Awards where a crisp silhouette and a high neck took center stage.
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| Keira Knightley in Giambattista Valli Haute Couture, Paul Andrew shoes, Judith Leiber bag, and Chanel jewelry |
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Sophie Hunter in Maison Martin Margiela |
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Felicity Jones in Dior Haute Couture and Van Cleef & Arpels |
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Rosamund Pike in Roland Mouret |
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Gugu Mbatha-Raw in Prada |
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Hannah Bagshawe in Valentino |
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Léa Seydoux in Prada |
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Julianne Moore in Tom Ford |
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Laura Bailey in Emilia Wickstead |
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Stacy Martin in Louis Vuitton |
Giorgio Armani designed his Privé collection around a single motif, that of the bamboo plant. It was all over the prints on the daywear (multiple versions on cropped, wide pants), recurred in bugle-beaded embroideries, in Plexiglas neckpieces, in delicate appliqués on organza. The symbolism was primarily meaningful to him, but not because of its Asian associations, he said. “To me, it’s like women today. Bamboo is a strong wood. It bends gracefully when the wind blows through it. It’s flexible. Its leaves make a beautiful sound. But afterwards, it always returns to how it was, standing up straight again.”
Armani’s salute to the resilient woman comes on the eve—well, there’s a little less than a month to go—of the Academy Awards. A couple of his prominent customers, Kristin Scott Thomas and Juliette Binoche were in the front row, doubtless scanning the runway for red-carpet options. Armani shrugged off the question of whether he puts extra Hollywood firepower into his eveningwear at Oscar time. “No,” he insisted. “And I’m not sure whether a lot of people will like what I do, because what I aim for is a more simple elegance.”
Spoken too modestly. In fact, the collection fell into two halves, the first loosely definable as day-to-cocktail pant looks, many with black obi belts, and the second, a myriad of his event-wear possibilities. True, there are no bouncy crinolines or draggy trains on offer. Armani’s core clientele, his women of substance, will find plenty to pick and choose from in his more classic beaded dresses or perhaps a black jumpsuit with an artfully graphic. asymmetrical halter top. But there are things here to flutter newcomers’ hearts too: a midi-length narrow powdery blue tiered silk shimmy dress, lightly embroidered with bamboo leaves, and a delicately pretty frock, almost redolent of ingénue thirties movie glamour, constructed of sheer black organza with foliage appliqués. Roll ahead to February 22, and we’ll see who wins them.
