Giorgio Armani On His Return To The Live Show For Men’s S/S '22

After a year of empty seats, Giorgio Armani once again welcomed an audience to his Milanese runway for his spring/summer 2022 men’s show. Staged in the courtyard of his own home in Via Borgonuovo 21, the collection was a portrait of the post-pandemic wardrobe according to Armani. Formal and relaxed silhouettes fused as traditional suits were broken up and new takes on conventional dress codes created, tailored to a time Armani believes is made for rule-breaking. “I think we have all learned to be informal and more relaxed in the way we dress,” as the designer told Anders Christian Madsen before the show.

How does it feel to be returning to live shows?

Returning to live shows after so many months of showing in a virtual format is stimulating. It’s like finally being back to doing my job as it should be done.

Is this the future of fashion?

I am not sure if this is the future of fashion, what I know is that what we went through over the past months has been a terrible experience but one that came with a lesson. I think we have learned that we can communicate fashion in a different way. So, for the future I see real shows mixed with digital entertainment for the public who won’t attend the shows, which I hope will be more intimate like they used to be.

A year ago, the pandemic had many calling for change to the industry. What would you like to change about fashion now?

The one thing that I would like to change about the system is the overproduction of ‘stuff’; of clothing, of events, of unnecessary things. That really was the main change that I was hoping to see after this pandemic turmoil. But probably, although we all wanted things to change at the beginning, we quickly forgot about those initial good intentions. What I’m seeing now is different and things are almost back to what they were.

Has the pandemic changed your personal habits?

I am a man of habit, but the pandemic has taught me some very important lessons. The main one is that you cannot really plan too much in advance. I don’t mind admitting that I am a control freak, I always needed to plan everything way in advance. But what the pandemic did was to disrupt all of our plans. So, we had to learn to have one look on the long term and another look on the short term, trying to make the best of both. Personally, I have learnt to enjoy things more and to work day by day, not planning too much ahead nor stressing too much. And I have to admit it’s been very healthy for me. I am also committed to staying close to my loved ones as much as possible because you never know what the future will bring.

This week, you denied reports of a merger with car company. Do rumours like these have any impact on you, or your outlook?

Not really. I still deny any rumours about the merging with a car company and this kind of rumours may affect my business, although not too much. To continue with the driving metaphor, I’m still the one at the driving seat. I have built all this over 40 years of [my] career, and I have made specific and detailed plans for the future. So, there is no need for people to stress out.

Does Mr Armani drive a Ferrari?

I do not drive a Ferrari, but I do appreciate the way Ferrari was able to create an Italian success by merging craftsmanship and innovation. I must confess my little indulgence: that is, I have a chauffeur, and I prefer to be driven around than drive the car myself.