Moschino’s pre-fall collection is full of heart. The Italian label has never shied away from iconography, but given that Davide Renne, the house’s newly-minted creative director, passed away less than a month after being named to the post, the symbol took on new meaning here. The first look, a tuxedo shirt with frills down the front, is decorated with a large red heart inset at the chest, while the last two looks feature fleeced insets that cut across the leg of trousers, and the arms of crewneck sweaters and handsome car coats. This same color-blocking effect is used with other geometric shapes like triangles and circles, which toyed playfully with perception.
The brand’s tongue-in-cheek aesthetic is present in the security tags that are an essential part of the in-person retail experience, done up in bright red (what else?) and conspicuously placed on the front of jackets and trousers. It’s also reflected in comically proportioned ties (extra-wide, cut-short with a blunt hem, and done in brightly colored stripes); trompe l’oeil details like trousers with built-in exposed baggy boxer waistbands, or shrunken sweatshirts “collaged” with button-downs; and unexpected knitted touches like a cummerbund the house is calling a “belly warmer.”
A sky blue suit was one of the standouts of the collection. The jacket, a slightly retro silhouette with three buttons and flap pockets, is cut in leather, while the flared trousers and button-down shirt are a woven fabric. Accessorized with a black tie with neon salmon polka dots, it’s unmistakably Moschino, no visual gags necessary.