Milan menswear seeks reassurance in nostalgia and artisanal craft, from Fendi to Dolce&Gabbana

MILAN (AP) - Amid ongoing wars, hardening political divides and accelerating climate change, Milan designers made a play for escapism on the second day Saturday of Milan Fashion Week, mostly menswear previews for Spring-Summer 2025.

Many took inspiration from decades that now seem more reassuring, when the future brimmed with possibility. That future is now, and reality has hit. The message of climate change has penetrated the style studios: Men are offered thigh-baring shorts, open-weave tops and shoes, and inventive construction that permits ventilation on demand. Despite the seriousness of it all, fashion houses seemed to be saying: "Have fun." The missing ingredient: exuberance.

Dolce & Gabbana's collection for next summer was as smooth as a saxophone solo on the runway soundtrack. Loose silhouettes and artisanal weaving spelled summer ease.

Designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana created looks for the toniest Italian seaside destinations, from the Amalfi Coast to the Venetian Lido and Liguria's Portofino. The designers said in notes they took inspiration from "Italy's golden period," of the 1950s, epitomized by Marcello Mastroianni.

The runway star this season were the weaves: woven raffia jackets, shirts and tunics in summer shades of tan-and-black, echoed in the footwear and bags, that played well against pretty scalloped crocheted knitwear and leather weaves. The silhouette had a strong supporting role, harkening to a bygone era with ample pleated trousers rolled to a casual cuff. Boxy tops balanced with shorter shorts. Bold diagonal stripes hit a nostalgic chord.

Clean linens and suedes maintained the collection's quiet tones, broken up by occasional bursts of coral beading and sequins. The nature-inspired color palette included soothing juxtapositions of eggplant and wine, forest green and olive.

Models strolled through a path created by six spinning mirrored pillars offering a kaleidoscopic view of a Fendi's menswear collection that waxed nostalgic with mixed plaids, stripes and geometric prints.

The menswear silhouette by artistic director Silvia Venturini Fendi spoke to a yesteryear when shirts-and-ties were de rigueur, but not only. The bygone staples were updated with oversized shirts sticking out beneath light-weight bombers, paired with straight trousers or Bermuda shorts. Garment architectures gave an inventive edge, in asymmetric knitwear that buttoned down the shoulder for a peek-a-boo effect, or sleeves that slashed open at the elbow to convert from long to short, warm to cool.

Broad diagonal stripes on plaid recalled the 1970s, while a new, invented Fendi crest repeated for a geometric print. The soothing color palette of khaki, lime and sand, with pops of peach, provided monochrome palate cleansers from the busy patterns. Leather slip-on footwear or paneled sneakers finished the looks, accessorized with soft shoppers or a tidy patchwork bag made from leather cutoffs from Fendi workshops.

The runway show this season moved from the brand's intimate showroom to a new 7,000-square-meter (75,000-square-foot) space that show notes say has been recognized for its energy and environmental design. Despite the change in locale, hundreds of screaming, eager K-pop fans managed the trek to greet artists like Stray Kids' Bang Chan.