The headliner from Milan Fashion Week’s menswear edition is without a doubt Prada’s SS22 collection by Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons, with the duo presenting a gut-wrenching display set on one of the most beautiful Sardinian beaches we’ve ever seen (Boris just locked us down again… how could you do this to us?)
Bowling shirts, cropped sweater vests and short shorts are seen walking through a dimly-lit crimson corridor before emerging onto white sands, traipsing through rocky cliffs and dancing on submerged platforms out into the ocean. Sophisticated tailoring options are seen over bare skin, paired with mega-short skorts – yes, skorts – and open toe sandals. The aforementioned skorts were laden with heavy-set metal belts and adorned with loud, repeating print motifs, with the collection screaming “hot boy summer” and begging for a piña colada on the beach. Highlights came once again through the accessories on show: neon-colored bucket hats with mini-pockets adorned with the Prada stamp as well as sunglasses pockets (!!), and garishly-patterned luggage options consisting of barrel bags and large triangular over-the-shoulder numbers.
We see developments on the cohesion between the Raf Simons – Miuccia Prada duo, with their opening collections criticised for “an almost binary distinction” by many. 6 months ago Eliot Haworth of Fantastic Man pondered “whether they will come up with a voice that is distinct to the two of them”, and this collection fulfils his desires; while hints of Raf’s eponymous label’s silhouettes are still present, we end up with an assured crop of garments pumped full of Prada’s cultivated DNA, adorned with prints and patterns that are obviously Miuccia’s input. SS22 comes as a polished extrapolation of the middle ground that the pair found in time for FW21, with the duo firing on all cylinders and – after long last – getting along in harmony.
The show tugs at the heart strings of all of us after so many months locked at home, showing off what we wish we could be wearing – and where we wish we could be – every day of the year. Scroll through the gallery below to have a look at the killer collection.
