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.

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.