The late, great Karl Lagerfeld once said that if a fashion designer plays the same operas in his studio, chances are he might produce the same dresses – a veiled barb at one of his peers.
To prepare his spring collection for Etro, Marco de Vincenzo cranked up La Niña, an up-and-coming folk artist from Naples, who blends Neapolitan dialect with electronic sounds and multi-voice harmonies.
He said her sound really got under his skin.
“Music is inspiring. Music can push your imagination. And when I started designing this collection, I already knew that I would collaborate with the La Niña,” de Vincenzo said backstage before the show. “You will see that the rhythm of her music and the rhythm, the flux of this collection are really connected. You always listen to music when you design, but it doesn’t always happen that music will become one of the ingredients of your show.”
Carola Moccia, the woman behind La Niña, put on a spirited performance with her band and backup singers, banging their hand drums on a stage spread with kilims, evoking some underground club in the ’70s and adding to the wild, bohemian atmosphere.
But in addition to the music, there were too many other ingredients – fringe, metallic studs, ruffles, glass beading and an avalanche of house prints and metallic brocades – adding up to an overcharged collection.
Amid the cacophony, there were some feisty flounce skirts with side slits, cool jeans faintly etched with Etro patterns, and some sensational, densely decorated handbags that would spark plainer outfits.
After three years at the house, de Vincenzo said he is fully at peace with its legacy of maximalism and joyful self-expression via color and pattern. Now he just needs to play with these ingredients at a volume shy of blaring.
