Home as a shelter was the genesis of Marco Rambaldi’s spring 2027 collection. From a reference to Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own, the Bolognese designer developed the concept of a space where anyone who enters can express themselves freely, without any judgment. Among the many cultural inspirations on his mood board were Lisetta Carmi and Nan Goldin photos. Both the photographers, through opposite approaches, explored the idea of dignity and identity expressed within a safe space, often surrounded by a chosen family; a family that queer people frequently needed—back then as well as nowadays—to survive harsh societal conditions. Thus the house referred to by Rambaldi was a plural, open, and queer community, as the casting of the show proved once again.
This safe space was used to focus on those gestures that require time, like the handmade crocheted flowers linked together through a net to become a romantic red sweater. The flowers were also translated into jacquard motifs on embossed knitwear ensembles for the Rambaldi version of a suit. This season the designer decided to explore wider and somehow more feminine volumes, as with gowns made of a crocheted top and a deep blue crepe de Chine balloon skirt, proposed in a full white suitable-for-a-bride version as well. This couture-ish part of the collection was then completed by sleeker floral dresses with theatrical backs made of wide panels of fabric.
Finally, crochet was reinterpreted—as usual at a Rambaldi show—this time paired with denim. Vintage crochet inserts were added to denim pants, shorts, skirts, and jackets, then washed all together to obtain a distressed look, recalling those old tablecloths and bedspreads that grandmothers used to have as part of their dowry.