Rochas reminds us what modern glamour looks like

By

Godfrey Deeny

Published
Sep 27, 2018

Have to hand it to Dell´Acqua, the man has great range. A week ago in Milan, he showed a racy gal-about-town collection at his own Italian house, No 21. Yesterday, he unveiled his debut collaboration with Diego Della Valle, entitled Tod´s Factory. And Wednesday afternoon in the Theatre de Chaillot he whipped up some elegant visions for day and for night.

 “I wanted a statement on modern glamour,” said Dell´Acqua backstage after his polished performance.
 
The Neapolitan designer is a natural colorist, so his dazzling bitter lemon, double-breasted coat trimmed with masses of marabou feathers looked superb, as did the voluminous abstract gold-tinted Big Cat jacquard wrap coats that opened this show. The allure heightened by the backdrop, since out through the huge windows sunlight made the Eiffel Tower practically gleam.

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And women will find it hard to discover a better-cut pantsuit than Alessandro´s black crepe version. Plus, in a season overloaded with color it was reassuring to see a designer create so many notable looks in black: from the anthracite chenille evening cardigans to armadillo-shaped black calico boleros, they were all about grown-up sophistication.
 
Not every designer in Paris feels the need to be a slave to Instagram followers. Sometimes elegance needs to be understated to work best, as this Rochas collection reminded us.