With pieces modernly hedged in the Victorian style, Giambattista Valli just managed to show us his own unique version of the flower power trend through his latest Giambattista Valli resort 2017 collection.
Pompous and at times slightly opulent, the line-up doesn’t however fail to keep everything modern and fresh, although elegance and its devoted target audience are at the core of its philosophy. Italian fashion designer Giambattista Valli loves to experiment with dramatically different styles when designing his collections, usually letting his brand’s diffusion line, Giamba, showcase more contemporary looks for a younger audience.
Artfully arranged with 3D floral appliqués, rhythmical layers of fabrics and rich in texture materials, the Giambattista Valli resort 2017 collection looks like one of the most polished holiday line-ups you have probably ever seen, with the frilled looks meant for a brunch at a 5-star hotel, and the long slip dresses being perfect for a night out in the clair de lune.
Like the majority of the most recent resort collections, this one is also mainly heavier on the party dresses, the joviality of which is here successfully enhanced with the multi-dimensional color palette utilized. Red, green, yellow, dusty pink, and white all get alternated and mixed with one another, often serving us 3D illusions even where the appliqués are steadily embroidered to the fabrics and not actually multi-dimensional.
One of the most interesting parts of the collection, however, lies within the contrasting sequence of clean-cut ensembles versus billowing figures.
Valli managed to perfectly balance richly textured, heavy garments with more ethereal and fresh proposals, which respectively wrap the bodies adding volume, or caress them softly. High necks and structured shoulders get thus interrupted with delicate flared silhouettes and loads of frills and pleats, while geometric hourglass silhouettes get balanced with reversed oversized figures or drop-waist peplum proposals.
To reinforce such contrasting patterns, Valli mixed macramé embroideries with furry cascades of fabrics that somehow resemble wide stripes. The collection’s undeniable sense of ease and movement is at times abruptly interrupted with lightweight varsity jackets and static, heavyweight double-breasted asymmetrical ones, which could however be regarded as the most functional and utilitarian ones (above all, contrary to most of the collection’s other pieces, they easily transition from day into night).
As for the varsity jackets per se, they also keep an appealing synergy between Valli’s two lines, reminding us that their respective proposals are always interchangeable and ready to be mixed and matched with one another.
Lastly, a few Oriental-inspired ensembles add a bit of dazzle to the entire collection, offering new takes on the whole ‘kimono’ trend that is all the rage now.
Photos courtesy of Vogue
